Holland of the Dutch 



UNIFORM WITH THIS VOLUME 
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Belgium of the Belgians. By D. C. 

BOULGER 

France of the French. By E. 
Harrison Barker 

Germany of the Germans. By 
Robert M. Berry 

Italy of the Italians. By Helen 
Zimmern 

Turkey of the Ottomans. By Lucy 
M. J. Garnett 

Spain of the Spanish. By Mrs. 
Villiers-Wardell 

Servia of the Servians. By Chedo 

MlJATOVICH 

Switzerland of the Swiss. By 
Frank Webb 



Japan of the Japanese. 
J. H. Longford 



By Prof. 



Other volumes in preparation 




H.M. QUEEN WILHELMINA 



Holland of the Dutch 



By J 

Demetrius C. Boulger 

Author of 
*• Belgium of the Belgians ** 



NEW YORK 

CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS 

597-599 Fifth Avenue 

1920 



J)Jm 



Printed by 
Sir Isaac Pitman & Sons, Ltd., London 






TO MY FRIENDS 
IN HOLLAND 

BE TO ITS MERITS EVER KIND, 

AND TO ITS FAULTS A LITTLE BLIND.' 



CONTENTS 



CHAP. PAGE 

DEDICATION .V 

I. THE LAND WE CALL HOLLAND. ... 1 

II. WILLIAM OF ORANGE 12 

III. A BRIEF HISTORICAL SKETCH .... 22 

IV. THE DUTCH CONSTITUTION .... 36 
V. THE COURT AND SOCIETY .... 45 

VI. RIVERS AND CANALS 52 

VII. LAW AND JUSTICE 61 

VIII. EDUCATION t r 68 

IX. THE DUTCH ARMY 79 

X. THE DUTCH NAVY 91 

XI. HOLLAND'S COLONIAL EMPIRE .... 99 

XII. REVENUE, FINANCE, AND DEBT . . .110 

XIII. THE POPULATION — VITAL AND SOCIAL CONDITIONS 119 

XIV. V^ COMMERCE, RAILWAYS, AND INDUSTRY . .126 
XV. AGRICULTURE V'' 137 

XVI. RELIGION AND THE CHURCHES. . . .149 

XVII. AMUSEMENTS AND FETES . '-/ . . . .157 

XVIII. COSTUMES AND WEDDINGS ^. . . . 168 



vil 



Vlll CONTENTS 

CHAP. / PAGE 

XIX. LITERATURE AND JOURNALISM . . .179 

XX. ART, OLD AND NEW 188 

XXI. MUSIC AND THE DRAMA .... 195 

XXII. THE PROVINCE OF LIMBURG .... 203 

XXIII. THE CITY OF AMSTERDAM .... 214 

XXIV. THE ZUYDER ZEE 226 

XXV. NATIONAL CHARACTERISTICS AND SOME TYPES . 236 

XXVI. CONCLUSION 251 

INDEX ....... 263 



ILLUSTRATIONS 



H.M. QUEEN WILHELMINA .... 

DORDRECHT 

QUEEN WILHELMINA AND THE PRINCESS JULIANA 

ROYAL PALACE AT THE HAGUE . 

H.R.H. PRINCE HENDRIK OF THE NETHERLANDS 

H.M. QUEEN EMMA 

H.R.H. PRINCESS JULIANA .... 

THE COFFEE HOUR : BARGEMEN AT COFFEE . 

THE LAND HOUSE AT DELFT 

THE BINNENHOF — THE HAGUE . 

THE OLD CANAL, UTRECHT .... 

ST. JANSKERK, VIEW FROM THE OLD CANAL, UTRECHT 

THE CANAL AND DYKE. AT KAMPEN . 

PRINCE HENDRIK QUAY, AMSTERDAM . 

THE GROOTE MARKET, HAARLEM. 

THE COOLSINGEL AT ROTTERDAM. 

A TYPICAL TEAM IN FRIESLAND . 

INTERIOR OF FARM-HOUSE, LICHTERWOORDE . 

SHOOTING BOX NEAR DELDEN 

CANAL VIEW AT DORDRECHT 



Frontispiece 




facing 
page 

8 




14 




26 




34 




44 




48 




58 




64 




68 




74 


ECHT 


82 




88 




94 




. 108 




. 128 




. 138 




. 144 




. 148 




. 152 



IX 



X ILLUSTRATIONS 

PROCESSION WITH DRUMMERS 

A WOMAN OF ZEELAND 

A MAN OF ZEELAND . 

CHARLES BOISSEVAIN. 

THE HON. DR. KUYPER 

VIEW OF VENLO 

THE KAISER SAAL (ST. SERVATIUS, MAESTRICHT) 

LIEWE VROUWENKERK, MAESTRICHT . 

CANAL VIEW AT AMSTERDAM 

BRIDGE OVER THE AMSTEL, AMSTERDAM 

THE GROOTE MARKET, NIJMEGEN. 

MAJOR-GENERAL DE BAS .... 

W. H. DE BEAUFORT 



facing 
page 

158 
168 
172 
180 
184 
204 
208 
212 
216 
222 
236 
240 
252 



Holland of the Dutch 



CHAPTER I 

THE LAND WE CALL HOLLAND 

In the first place, an apology is due to Nederland and the 

Nederlanders for using the commonly accepted but inaccurate 

terms Holland and Dutchmen. Much as we 

Nederland. should like to introduce the change in English 

usage, the effort is too hopeless of success 

to be attempted here. The only defence that can be made 

for the name Holland as applying to the whole country instead 

of a province is that it distinguishes it from Belgium, which 

also forms part of the historic and natural Netherlands. 

The same consideration or difficulty has led French writers 
to adopt a similar usage as far as the country is concerned, 
but with them the description of the people as Hollandais 
{i.e., Hollanders) is a more faithful rendering than our term 
" Dutch," which is based on the radical error of treating them 
as Germans. A tendency to call their country Holland has 
recently become noticeable among the people themselves, but 
there is none at all to speak of their nationality otherwise 
than as Netherlanders. At the zenith of his power Napoleon I 
haughtily described Holland as the alluvion of French rivers, 
and probably but for the Russian adventure this description 
would figure in French geographical works to-day. 

The lower courses of the Rhine, the Meuse, and the Scheldt 
reach the North Sea at various points separated by no more 
than sixty miles from north to south, and within that range 
not fewer than eight main channels have forced their ways 
to the ocean. It is south of what is called the mouth of the 

1 

I— (3390) 



2 Holland of the Dutch 

Meuse — although that passage includes three separate channels 

from the Rhine — ^that the coast presents the broken-up 

appearance of an archipelago, to the greater 

The Alluvion p^j-j- Qf which has been firiven the expressive 

of Three Great ^ x 'z i j i-i,- xi. • x xi. 

Rivers. name of Zeeland. This was the region of the 

marsh-lands which long placed a barrier in the 
path of the Romans and created the tradition of Batavian 
liberty. The rivers rushed uncontrolled to the sea, and the 
tribes found but a precarious and shifting foothold on the 
sandy dunes rising above the waters. We know nothing of 
the system of government that held them together, but 
at least it sufficed to nurture and sustain the purest 
patriotism. 

The Romans passed, and the Franks stood in their place. 
The Frank system was extremely simple. Behind the dunes 

and the sea-lands lay the forests ; and a 
Land.^^ forester was appointed to control the forests, 

and also the land that lay beyond them, the 
Hollow Land, below or on the level of the sea. When the 
Carlovingian Empire came to be parcelled out in fiefs, what 
was more natural than that a Count of Holland should figure 
amongst the first creations ? And in the countdom of Holland 
was included not only Zeeland but Frisia, then connected with 
Holland by land, for in those days the Zuyder Zee was still 
a lake. 

The coast of Holland thus formed a feudal entity, and its 
lord was one of the leading vassals of the King of France 
until, in the time of Philip the Good, the family became 
merged in the House of Burgundy. It may be well 
to remember that the Theodores and Florences of 
Holland represented the only reigning but feudal family in 
the Northern Provinces, for the Duchies of Brabant and 
Limburg were always essentially Belgian, and Southern. 
As a consequence of this tradition the hold of the Orange 
family on the loyalty of the nation has always been firmest 
in what was the ancient Countdom of Holland. It was there 



The Land we Call Holland 3 

that William of Orange was proclaimed Stadtholder in 1572 
as the chief of the Dutch Netherlanders in their struggle with 
Philip of Spain. 

The exigencies of space, the perils of existence on an expanse 
of shifting sands and uncertain bottom, led at an early period 

to attempts to repel the floods of the sea and 
the^Sea^ the rivers, and to build up the land so that 

the occupants might feel somewhat surer 
of the ground they stood on. But we have no details until 
the Middle Ages were far advanced, and w'e can only infer from 
the fact that Amsterdam and Rotterdam were only fishing 
villages when Ghent and Bruges were walled cities maintaining 
their independence against great States, that the shores of 
Holland offered but httle inducement for fixed settlement. 
Periodic inundations — those of 1421 and 1570 are historical — 
swept away not only large tracts of coast land, but also the 
population who had had the courage to settle upon them. 
In the first place, the Netherlanders sought only to obtain 
compensation for the land lost to the sea by draining the 
meers or lakes, and this process began as early as the year 
1440. But the success that attended these efforts encouraged 
the bolder scheme of repeUing and placing limits to the 
sea. 

Without troubling ourselves about indentations and gaps, 
Holland has a coast line from the Dollart to Flanders of 
something over 200 miles. The Frisian isles from Borkum to 
Texel represent, no doubt, detached portions of the mainland 
at the time when the Zuyder Zee was no more than an inland 
piece of water, but they serve now to break the force of the 
ocean as it beats on the coasts of Friesland and Groningen. 
On the other hand, from the Helder to Sluis the coast is exposed 
to its unbroken force, and it is here that the dunes have been 
fortified and supplemented by sea-walls, ramparts, and break- 
waters to repel the encroachments of a ruthless invader. 
Notwithstanding all the art of man, and the tireless vigilance 
of the special service long entrusted with the task of preserving 



4 Holland of the Dutch 

the dykes, he does occasionally break through, as in the 
Texel in 1825, and in Friesland in 1861. These inroads were 
as nothing, however, compared to the peril that menaced 
the whole artificial barrier at the close of the eighteenth cen- 
tury from the secret operations of a wood worm called " taret," 
which had eaten into and shaken the piles that supported 
the whole fabric of the coast defences. The mischief was 
fortunately discovered, and by a national effort not less 
heroic than the resistance so often made against a human 
invader, the wooden piles were strengthened with iron and 
copper, and the efforts of the " taret " worm were baffled by 
the interposition of a metal barrier. 

The dunes and the sea-dyke tower 40 feet above the North 

Sea. Below them, and at a level in some places from 20 to 

40 feet inferior to that of the sea, stretch 

The Polders, the rich polders, the thickly cultivated fields, 
of the western provinces of Holland. When 
the sea was arrested only the first part of a great task had 
been accomplished ; there remained the reclamation of a 
land much of which was under water. This process began 
in the earlier half of the sixteenth century ; some of the most 
remarkable achievements of the kind, like the draining of the 
Haarlem Lake, occurred in the nineteenth, and it will be very 
strange if the present century does not witness a strenuous 
effort to reclaim at least a good part of the Zuyder 
Zee. 

In the struggle between man and nature it has been com- 
puted that the sea has wrested nearly 400,000 acres from 
Holland, but that man has given her back one million acres ; 
but it is right to say that in the former figure the lost part of 
the Zuyder Zee is not included. It is well to bear in mind 
also that the portions of the country below sea-level are con- 
fined to Zeeland, the two Hollands, and detached bits of 
Friesland and Groningen. The six remaining provinces are 
entirely above sea-level with the exception of a small tract 
round Zwolle in Overyssel. 



The Land we Call Holland 5 

The soil of the seaboard provinces, largely mingled with 
sand and gravel, did not favour the raising of regular crops, 

and it has therefore become a region essen- 
^ovinces.^ tially devoted to pasture, the cultivation of 

vegetables, and the growth of plants and 
flowers. But the inland provinces are becoming more and 
more centres of the cultivation of wheat and cereals, agri- 
culture being in general favour. Limburg produces immense 
quantities of grain, and North Brabant, which not so long ago 
was covered \sdth moor and marsh land, is now being rapidly 
brought under the plough. It is usual to regard Holland as 
a once-submerged land, in the sense of its having been re- 
claimed from the sea, but the description appHes to less than 
one-third of the territory, while the remaining two-thirds 
stand, and have always stood, at a secure altitude above the 
highest tides. No doubt the maritime enterprise of the 
nation, the great overseas trade, the possession of a Colonial 
Empire, have brought into stronger rehef the representation, 
so popular with historical writers since the time of Motley, 
that Holland was wrested from the sea. It might have been 
a greater State if, leaving the sea to do its worst, the national 
energy had been turned to the acquisition of East Frisia and 
the mouth of the Ems. Dealing with the facts as they are, 
it is only necessary to observe that the American writer's 
opening description in his principal work appUes only to 
part, and that not the greater part, of Holland. 

Modern Holland is divided into eleven Pro\ninces, viz., 
Zeeland, South Holland, North Holland, Utrecht, North 

Brabant, Gelderland, Drenthe, Overyssel, 
Provin^(Ss. Groningen, Friesland, and Limburg. In order 

to avoid confusion, it may here be stated 
that the Seven Provinces which formed in 1579 the Union of 
Utrecht were HoUand, Zeeland, Gueldres, Utrecht, Frisia, 
Overyssel, and Groningen. The subdivision of Holland, and 
the additions of Drenthe, Limburg, and North Brabant 
make up the present total. The province of Holland was 



6 Holland of the Dutch 

subdivided with the view of placing the two capitals — ^The 
Hague and Amsterdam — on an equal footing. 

The area of the country is computed at 13,464 square miles, 
its greatest length being 210 miles, and its greatest breadth 
120 miles, but at Coevorden Prussia is only 30 miles distant 
from the Zuyder Zee. The population has increased with 
equal rapidity to that of Belgium. It now numbers approx- 
imately six millions, the total of the last census in 1909 having 
been 5,898,429 souls. Much of the country and notably 
North Brabant is still sparsely inhabited, but, on the other 
hand, this is the region where the area under cultivation and 
the population alike are showing the most notable increase. 
Before many decades are passed the reclamation of the Zuyder 
Zee will have become imperative, in order to provide fresh 
elbow-room for a nation increasing by more than half a million 
in every ten years. It is obvious that any check of the 
national prosperity, any adverse blow by the diversion of the 
traffic now traversing Holland as the shortest route to other 
countries, would be attended by the pinch of necessity in the 
densely peopled areas round the great ports. 

Water plays another and more beneficent role in the life 
of the country than as the enemy which threatens to extinguish 

it. It fills the arteries which sustain the 
Waterways, existence and the prosperity of the Dutch 

nation. The great rivers Rhine and Meuse 
are the conductors of much of the trade of Germany, Belgium, 
and even France. Holland benefits by the cheapest means 
of transport, and although new German railways and canals 
may divert some of the traffic they can never deprive the 
Rhine of the superiority with which it has been endowed by 
Nature. Nor is there much reason to doubt that the traffic 
on the Meuse can and will be enormously developed by joint 
Franco-Belgian efforts, as soon as the impending German 
restrictions on the Moselle route bear fruit. 

But in Holland the rivers have been supplemented by the 
canals and canalised waterways, which not merely provide 



The Land we Call Holland 7 

fresh routes and avenues traversing the country in all direc- 
tions, but supplement, and rectify the faults of, the rivers 
where Nature has given them too wide a curve or a false 
direction. We shaU have to speak in detail further on of 
Holland's waterways, but in this general introduction of the 
subject to the reader it is enough to record the impression 
that it is the one country of Europe where water may be found 
everywhere, and where a state of drought must be unknown. 
Some imaginative writer has called the Dutch an amphibious 
people, by which it may be assumed is meant that they have 
known how to turn the natural conditions of their country 
to the greatest possible advantage. 

The scenery of Holland presents three different aspects : 
the concealed land, the flat land, and in parts of Gueldres and 
Limburg the mountain and wood if only in 
Scenery. miniature, which made some enthusiastic 
Zeelander compare that region with Switzer- 
land. The concealed land is that of the polders protected 
and hidden by the embankments which confine the waterways. 
As the traveller in his boat or steamer passes along the canals 
and estuaries the only indication he obtains of the fact that 
on the further side of the ramparts is a cultivated and popula- 
ted land is the occasional sight of a church tower or a windmill. 
The flat land is the bulk of HoUand. There the landscape 
presents a monotonous and unbroken surface with nothing 
distinctive upon which the eye can fasten until, wearied by 
the sameness of the scene, it omits to look. Only in Gueldres 
and Limburg does the picturesque present itself. Round the 
heights of Arnhem, in the woods of Het Loo, on Holland's one 
mountain, Wisselschebosch, the traveller will find some 
semblance of more favoured and attractive scenes. 

The south-eastern boundary of Holland is formed by the 
range of hills that separates Limburg from Prussia, but the 
hills do not belong to Holland. In 1814 Prussia took very 
good care when demarcating the frontier to appropriate them, 
leaving the Dutch what was then only marsh and moorland. 



8 Holland of the Dutch 

Some of these hills attain five or six hundred feet in height, 

but the Germans now see below them no longer marshes and 

. . uncultivated plains, but productive corn- 

^^PrussiZ^ fields and, where agriculture stops, the coal 

mines of Sittard and Heerlen. After all, 
then, time has provided its own compensation. The assign- 
ment of territory a hundred years ago has not proved quite 
so one-sided as was intended. 

But the most striking feature in the life and aspect of 
Holland is to be found in her towns. If none of these can 

boast the antiquity of Bruges, they all possess 
Old Cities. in a remarkable degree the form and traces 

of mediaevalism. Nowhere out of Nuremberg 
can houses of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries be seen in 
such a perfect state of preservation as in Dordrecht and 
Utrecht. In towns like Utrecht, Maestricht, Groningen and 
others which were bishoprics and abbeys centuries before the 
Reformation, the churches form their main features. These 
have come down to the present day in a wonderful state of 
preservation, due no doubt to the fact that the Spaniards 
spared them alone of all buildings during the savage scenes 
of the sixteenth century. 

The three largest towns, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and The 
Hague, became cities almost together at the close of the 
fifteenth or the commencement of the sixteenth century. 
The two first named were originally fishing villages, and 
developed into centres of commerce only after the decline 
of Bruges as one of the great marts of Europe. They did not 
begin to acquire real importance, however, until after the 
eclipse of Antwerp amid the troubles of the last half of the 
sixteenth century. The Hague, originally the hunting-place 
of the Counts of HoUand, was made the capital of the United 
Provinces when they repudiated the supremacy of Spain in 
1580, and has always retained the aspect and status of a 
capital and of a Court residence, owing nothing of its import- 
ance and prosperity to commerce or trade. Amsterdam, built 




Q 



The Land we Call Holland 9 

on piles, has been called the Venice of the North, and many 
of its streets are waterways crossed as its citizens boast, by 
nine hundred bridges. It is one of the half-dozen greatest 
seaports in the world, and this is the more remarkable because 
it stands on an inland sea, as it were, and holds communication 
with the outer world through a narrow canal. 

But while Amsterdam has probably reached the zenith of 
its prosperity Rotterdam is forging ahead, and here rather 
than on the Zuyder Zee is the most formidable rival of Antwerp 
and Hamburg. 

In these two cities of the ancient Holland are concentrated 
the commercial enterprise and wealth of the State. They are 
the ports for Java and the other Dutch colonies, they deal 
with England and the Americas, and their bankers and 
merchants represent the voice and weight of Dutch finance 
on the great international exchange, which, without a fixed 
home or precise entity, now plays so large a part in controlling 
the destinies of mankind. 

It is in the smaller towns, however, that the distinctive 

features of Dutch life reveal themselves more clearly. The 

innate conservatism of the people, their 

Other Towns, old-fashioned ways, their rigid adherence to 
the " oude sleure," their belief that what was 
best must still be best, are naturally more evident in com- 
paratively small provincial towns than in the great cities 
where there is always more or less of a cosmopolitan society. 
At Arnhem, and in a lesser degree at Nijmegen, the wealthy 
planters of the Indies, and the rich merchants of Amsterdam 
form a community, or even a caste, quite distinct from any 
other in the country. Amid pretty surroundings they have 
created a villadom which is not to be matched anywhere, and 
they pass their leisured ease in an atmosphere from which 
cares and responsibilities are excluded with the close attenticn 
bestowed in less favoured circles on the keeping out of draughts. 
It may be a life of inglorious ease, but the members of this 
plutocracy are quite happy ; and more especially would they 



10 Holland of the Dutch 

be so if they only realised that their comfort and luxury do not 
raise the envy of their less favoured countrymen, as happens 
in other lands that could be named. 

If in these places we find commercial prosperity in either 
its active or its passive phases at its height,^ at Groningen, 

Assen, and Leeuwarden are to be seen the 

A '^^fti results of agricultural activity and wealth. 

Region. That is the realm of the agriculturist, the 

home of the " boers," where farmer and farm 
labourer are on a level, where everyone owns his land and has 
his own horses, where the womenkind lay up great store of 
gold and silver ornaments, and where a man is poor if he has 
not a thousand pounds ready to his call./ It is wealth gained 
in the most honest occupation under the sun, the extraction 
from the soil of its natural produce, and accumulated during 
generations and even centuries by the thrift and prudence of 
the race. Holland is stiU the land where agriculture stands 
much in honour, and the backward provinces like North 
Brabant and Limburg are now being raised to something 
approaching the level of Friesland and its neighbour. 

Despite the flatness of the country, and the absence of 
woods and of hills, the attractiveness of Holland grows upon 

one with closer acquaintance. It is difficult 
HoUande " *^ analyse the feeling, but perhaps the cause 

may lie in its prevailing and imperturbable 
calm. In the absence of the striking and the abnormal the 
mind becomes reconciled to the consideration of minor 
details, and finding them in everything harmonising and 
appropriate, conceives a new ideal of beauty. Something 
of this sentiment must have become part of Dutch mentality, 
for we find large numbers of Dutchmen, with the means of 
travel at their disposal, who never leave their native province, 
and who think if they adventure (" go abroad " = huiten) 
so far as another province that they have made a great jour- 
ney. Whatever explanation may be attempted of this reluc- 
tance to leave the home, one thing is certain ; Dutch opinion 



The Land we Call Holland 11 

is dominated and swayed by the spirit of content. It flou- 
rishes in a kind of Capua beneath the grey skies of our northern 
hemisphere, where principles once adopted are more firmly 
held than under the suns of Campania. This explains why 
to the Netherlander his country is always " Mooi Hollande " 
(pretty Holland). 



CHAPTER II 

WILLIAM OF ORANGE 

As the founder of Dutch independence, William of Orange 
claims a chapter to himself, but we do not propose to cover 

ground already traversed by others. For 
Fami^ ^^^ information of the general reader it is 

necessary, however, to explain briefly the 
manner in which the present reigning family came to power, 
and through what vicissitudes Holland passed in attaining 
the dignity of a nation. 

Although there have been breaches in the concord, the 
fame of Holland has been more or less intertwined for three 

and a half centuries with the fortunes of the 
Orange-Nassau. House of Orange-Nassau, that is to say, for 

the whole period of its national existence. 
In a sense that does not apply to any other country, Holland 
was the creation of one man, William of Orange, who was the 
champion of its national and religious liberties. If there had 
been no WiUiam the Silent, if he had left no sons of " the 
generous blood of Nassau " to continue and complete his 
work, there can hardly be any reasonable doubt that Alva 
and Parma would have accomplished their task and broken 
the spirit of the Northern Netherlands, as they had that of 
the Southern. When the populace of Amsterdam and Leyden 
raise to-day the cry of " Oranje Boven " — " Long live 
Orange I " — they show that nations are still capable of the 
sentiment of gratitude. 

There was nothing in their earlier history to suggest that 
a member of this family would found a dynasty on the shores 
of the North Sea. The family of Nassau was among the 
most ancient ruling houses in Germany. Seven centuries ago 
Adolphus of Nassau was raised to the Imperial throne, and 

12 



William of Orange 13 

although the principality has now gone to swell the greatness 
of Prussia, the castle which was the cradle of the race and 
gave it a name still figures among the sights 
^^FaS'y.^'' of the Lahn VaUey. In the middle of the 
thirteenth century (1254) the family of Nassau 
divided into two branches, the elder or Walranian line retain- 
ing the Duchy, the younger or Othonian estabUshing itself 
at DiUenburg, in the modem state of Hesse. In the year 
1350 Otho of Nassau-DiUenburg (the descendant of the first 
Otho) married the last Countess of Vianden in Luxemburg, and 
thus began the connection of this family with the Netherlands. 
A hundred years later his descendant, Engelbert of Nassau, 
was one of the chief ad\'isers and supporters of Charles the 
Bold, and left the large estates in Brabant, which he had 
acquired in the service of the Emperor Maximihan, to his 
brother John. It was John, the grandfather of WiUiam of 
Orange, who built the Nassau palace in Brussels while he was 
holding the office of Governor of Brabant for the Emperor 
Maximihan, Regent for his son Phihp the Fair. 

John III, known as the Younger, married the Princess 
Ehzabeth of Hesse, and left two sons, Henry and WiUiam, 
the former of whom was prominent among the courtiers and 
councillors of the Emperor Charles V. On his father's death 
he took the German estates, while those in the Netherlands 
passed to his brother WiUiam. But Henry is important for 
another reason in that it was he who brought the Orange 
title and principahty into the Nassau famUy. 

The principahty of Orange was situated in France in 
the province of Dauphin^, a short distance north of the city 
of Avignon. It had been dependent on the 
o"arang? various Burgundian dynasties, and its so- 
caUed independence only dated from the time 
of Phihbert of Orange, who attached himself to the then win- 
ning German side under Charles V. He repudiated his 
aUegiance to the King of France, and as Orange had never 
been the fief of the Empire it necessarily foUowed that it thus 



14 Holland of the Dutch 

became independent. But this independence was never 
recognised by France, and when William III (William Henry I 
of Nassau-Orange), sometime King of England as well as Stadt- 
holder of the Netherlands, died in 1702, Orange was declared 
an extinct fief and united with France — a position recognised 
by the Treaty of Utrecht in 1714. 

Let us retrace the history as to how Orange passed to the 
Nassau family. In the year 1373 Orange had passed into the 
hands of the family of Chalons, and at the beginning of the 
sixteenth century it was still in their possession. In the 
year 1515 Henry of Nassau — ^just mentioned — married 
Claudia, the only sister of the reigning Prince Philibert of 
Orange, the last male of his race. Philibert was a general 
of much promise who served the Emperor Charles V, but he 
was killed early in his career in 1530 at the siege of Florence. 
His rights and the succession passed to his nephew Rene, the 
only son of Henry of Nassau and Claudia of Chalons. Rene 
was also a soldier, and like his uncle served the Emperor well. 
Like him also, he was killed at a siege, that of St. Dizier, in 
1544. Before proceeding to the wars he made a will dated 
20th June, 1544, leaving the title and possessions of Orange 
to his first cousin William of Nassau, at that time a boy of 
twelve years of age. It will thus be seen that William WcLS 
only a collateral heir, and that he had no co-relationship in 
blood with the families of Orange and Chalons. Yet of all 
the holders of the title he was the one destined to make it 
most famous. 

The second son of John of Nassau and Elizabeth of Hesse 

was William, known in the family annals as the " Vieux," 

or the Old. He inherited from his father the 

"^Stotberg!^ estates in the Netherlands, which certainly 

included the Castle of Vianden and the palace 

in Brussels. This prince married the Countess Juliana of 

Stolberg, by whom he had a large family of sons and daughters. 

Of the sons, William, born in 1532, and subsequently known 

as the Silent, was the eldest. He was the ninth bearer of his 




QUEEN WILHELMINA AND THE PRINCESS JULIANA 



William of Orange 15 

name in the Nassau pedigree, and the first in that of Orange. 
Motley is inaccurate in calling him " William the Ninth of 
Orange.'' Three of his brothers, Louis, Adolphus, and 
Henry, fell in the wars with Spain, and to John, the youngest, 
came eventually the German estates upon which the ancient 
line of Nassau-Dillenburg was continued. We shall note 
later on the marriage of Anna, William's daughter, with her 
cousin William Louis — John's son. 

Having established the two essential facts for our purpose 
as to how the Nassau family came into the Netherlands, and 
as to how it acquired the title of Orange, it would be entirely 
beyond our purpose to attempt here any biography of the 
prince who founded Dutch independence. If there was no 
other reason, space alone would forbid. But, indeed, there 
is no need, for no ruler or maker of history has ever been the 
subject of such close study and analysis. This must be 
attributed to the fact that none was ever associated with 
a more stormy period of politics or a more dramatic phase of 
human passion. 

There is one observation that may be made here as to the 

limitations of his success with due regard to the scope and 

object of this work. William of Orange failed 

Belgian Views, in the Southern Netherlands — that is to say, 
Belgium — for two reasons. He left the 
Roman Church when the peoples of those provinces refused to 
leave it at least in the mass or even in the majority. In the 
next place he did not occupy the commanding place among 
the Belgian nobles to which Motley elevates him. He was 
rather a new-comer, one of those German immigrants who 
owed their fortune to the Emperors Maximilian and Charles, 
but the Belgians never loved, nor do they now love, the 
Germans. Motley descants on his connection with the 
Netherlands because a remote ancestor named Otho married, 
in the year 1050, a member of the ruling house of Gueldres, 
but William, better appreciating his own position, placed 
himself in the background of the conclave of Belgian nobles. 



16 Holland of the Dutch 

The more circumstances and his own ambition raised him to 
the position of a Dictator, the more did he incur the jealousy 
and distrust of his peers. 

But the very facts which prevented his welding the Belgic 
communities under his sway were those that mainly con- 
tributed to his triumph in the North, where 

Protestantism, he had to deal not with a class but with a 
people. If he had not become a Protestant, 
the Netherlanders would not have elected him their Stadt- 
holder, nor would he have been the hero of ** the beggars of 
the sea." There was another and a subtler reason. The 
noble feudal class in Holland and the great cities was prac- 
tically extinct. The Prince of Orange had then no rivals. 
He was fighting the battle of the people for freedom and 
independence not merely in religious but in poUtical and social 
matters. In this effort his lieutenants among his own order 
were only his brothers, a few German kinsmen, and the elite of 
the city rulers. He stood alone, and thus it came about that 
he founded what in the end developed into a dynasty. 

The assassination of WiUiam of Orange in 1584 was one 
of those felon acts when the kiUing of a leader is expected to 
entail the death of a cause, but which frequently produce the 
opposite effect by strengthening it. It was perpetrated in 
Delft, where the house in which the deed was done is still 
carefully preserved. In the neighbouring church stands the 
fine monument erected by the Dutch nation to their great 
liberator. The following description from the animated pages 
of the Italian author, the late Signor De Amicis, gives perhaps 
the most just impression we possess of the career and work 
of WiUiam the Silent, who acquired that sobriquet from the 
self-control he displayed when Henry II of France revealed 
to him Philip's intention to introduce the Spanish Inquisition 
into the Netherlands. I aUow myself to quote it^ because 

^ This quotation is made with the permission of Messrs. Putnam's 
Sons, the publishers of the last edition of Holland and its People, by 
Edmondo De Amicis. 



William of Orange 17 

I believe it to be so little known, and because it seems to 
harmonise with the character of this work — 

" The mausoleum of William the Silent is in the middle of the Church. 

It is a sort of small temple in black and white marble loaded with 

ornament and sustained by columns between which are four statues 

j^ A • • representing Liberty, Prudence, Justice and Religion. 

\A7^*^^^^ Upon the sarcophagus lies the figure of the prince in 

the SI t" ^^^^^ marble, and at his feet the effigy of the little 

' dog that saved his life at the siege of Malines, 

waking him by its barkings one night in his tent when two Spaniards 

were creeping upon him to assassinate him. At the feet of this figure 

rises a fine bronze statue of Victory with outspread wings, and supported 

only upon the toes of the left foot, and opposite, on the other side of 

the little temple, another bronze statue representing William seated 

dressed in his armour with uncovered head, the helmet lying at his 

feet. A Latin inscription sets forth that the monument was raised by 

the States of Holland " to the eternal memory of that William of 

Nassau whom Philip II, scourge of Europe, feared, and never overcame 

or conquered but killed by atrocious guile." His sons are sepulchred 

beside him, and in the crypt below lie all the princes of his dynasty. 

' ' In the presence of this monument the lightest and most frivolous 
mind feels itself constrained to stop and ponder, recalling the 
tremendous struggle whose hero and conqueror lies below. 

" On one side is Philip II, on the other William of Orange. Philip, 
shut up in the gloomy solitudes of the Escurial, lord of an Empire that 
embraced all Spain, the north and south of Italy, Belgium and Holland ; 
in Africa, Oran, Tunis, the Cape de Verde and Canary Islands ; in 
Asia, the Philippine Islands ; in America, the Antilles, Mexico, Peru ; 
married to the Queen of England ; nephew of the Emperor of Germany 
who obeyed him almost as a vassal ; sovereign, it may be said, of 
Europe, since his nearer neighbours are all weakened by political and 
religious dissensions ; having under his hand the best soldiers in 
Europe, the greatest captains of the time, the gold of America, the 
industry of Flanders, the science of Italy, an army of informers chosen 
from all nations, fanatically devoted to himself, the blind instruments 
of his will ; the most astute, the most mysterious of the princes of his 
time ; having on his side everything that enchains, corrupts, terrifies, 
and moves the world ; arms, riches, glory, genius, religion. Before 
this formidable being around whom all creatures prostrate themselves, 
rises William of Orange. 

" This man, without a kingdom and without an army, is more powerful 
than he. Like Philip, he has been a disciple of Charles V, and has 
learned the art of founding thrones, and the art of overturning them as 
well. Like Philip he is astute and impenetrable ; but he sees more 
clearly with the eyes of his intellect into the future. He possesses, 
as does his enemy, the faculty of reading the souls of men, but he has 
also what his enemy has not, the power of gaining their hearts. He 
has a good cause to sustain ; but he knows how to make use of all 

2— (3390) 



18 Holland of the Dutch 

the arts by which bad ones are supported. Philip, who spies upon 
and reads all men, is himself spied upon and read by him. The designs 
of the great King are discovered and circumvented before they are put 
in action ; mysterious hands search his caskets and his pockets, and 
mysterious eyes read his secret papers. William in Holland reads the 
thoughts of Philip in the Escurial ; foresees, unravels, overturns all 
his plots ; mines the earth under his feet, provokes and flies before 
him, but returns again perpetually like a phantom that he sees but 
cannot clutch, or clutching cannot destroy. And when at last he dies 
victory remains with him dead, and defeat with his living enemy. 
Holland is without her head, but the Spanish monarchy is shaken to 
its fall and never will recover. 

" In this prodigious struggle in which the figure of the King becomes 
smaller and smaller until it finally disappears, that of the Prince of 
Orange grows and grows, until it becomes the most glorious figure 
of the century. On that day when hostage with the King of France he 
discovered the design of Philip to establish the Inquisition in the Low 
Countries he consecrated himself to the defence of the liberties of his 
country, and never in his life did he hesitate for one moment in the 
path he had chosen. The advantages of noble birth, a royal fortune, 
the peaceful and splendid existence that he loved by nature and habit, 
he sacrificed all for his country ; proscribed and reduced to poverty, 
he constantly rejected the offers of freedom and favour that were made 
to him, under a thousand forms and in a thousand ways, by the enemy 
who hated and feared him. Surrounded by assassins, the mark for the 
most atrocious calumnies, accused even of cowardice before the enemy, 
and of the murder of his wife w^hom he adored ; looked upon sometimes 
with suspicion by the very people whom he was defending ; he bore 
all with calmness and in silence. He went about his chosen work con- 
fronting infinite peril with tranquil courage. Never did he flatter or 
bend before the people, never was he blinded by their passion ; he was 
their guide, their chief, their leader always ; he was the mind, the 
conscience and the arm of the revolution ; the beacon fire whence 
irradiated the heat by which his country lived. Great in audacity as 
in prudence he preserved his integrity in the time of perjury and 
perfidy ; calm in the midst of violence he kept his hands immaculate 
when all the courts in Europe were stained with blood. With an 
army gathered up here and there, with allies weak and doubtful, 
harassed by the internal discords of Lutheran and Calvinist, noble 
and burgher, magistrates and people, with no great captains under 
him, he had to struggle against the municipal spirit of the provinces 
that scoffed at his authority and slipped from under his hand, and he 
triumphed in a cause that seemed beyond human control. He tired 
out the Duke of Alva, he tired out Requescens, he tired out Don John 
of Austria, he tired out Alexander Farnese (Parma) ; he brought to 
nought the plots of foreign princes who wished to succour his country 
in order to subjugate it. He conquered sympathy and aid from every 
part of Europe, and completing one of the most splendid revolutions 
in history, founded a free state in spite of an Empire that was the terror 
of the Universe. 



William of Orange 19 

" This man, so tremendous and great a figure before the world, was 
also a loving husband and father, a kind friend and affable companion, 
fond of gaiety and festivals, a magnificent and polished host. He was 
accomplished, knowing, besides the Flemish tongue, P'rench, German, 
Spanish, Italian, Latin, and could discourse learnedly of most things. 
Although surnamed William the Silent (m.ore for having kept so long 
the secret discovered at the French Court than because he was habitu- 
ally taciturn) he was one of the most eloquent men of his day. He was 
simple in his manners, plain in his dress, loved and was beloved by the 
people. 

" He frequently walked in the streets of the city alone and with his 
head uncovered, conversing with the workmen and the fishermen who 
offered him drink in their own cups ; he listened to their grievances, 
settled their differences, and entered their homes to re-establish peace 
in families, and they called him Father William. He was indeed the 
father, rather than the son of his country. The sentiments of admira- 
tion and gratitude that still live for him in the hearts of the Hollanders 
have all the intimate and tender character of filial affection ; his 
venerated name may still be heard in their mouths ; his greatness 
despoiled of every veil or ornament remains entire, clear, firm and solid, 
like his work." 

William of Orange was married four times. His first wife 

was Anne of Egmont, daughter of Count de Bur en and cousin 

of the famous Lamoral Egmont executed on 

Four Wives. ^^^ Grand Place of Brussels by Alva's order. 
By her he had one son, Philip William, and 
one daughter Mary. Philip was taken to Spain at an early 
age and educated there under the close supervision of the 
King. There is a story to the effect that he once threw a 
Spanish officer out of a window for traducing his father, but 
when he returned to the Netherlands after his father's death 
he was a strict Catholic and a supporter of Spain. He died 
in 1618 having married in 1606 Eleanor de Bourbon, Princess 
of Conde, and aunt of " the great Conde," leaving no heir. 
His sister Mary married Count Hohenlohe. 

William's second wife was Anne of Saxony, by whom he 
had one son, Maurice, who succeeded him as Stadtholder, and 
of whom we shall say more in the next chapter. There were also 
two daughters of this marriage, Anna, who married her cousin. 
Count William Louis, son of John, who returned to Germany, 
and Emiha, who married Prince Emanuel of Portugal. 



20 Holland of the Dutch 

His third wife was Charlotte de Bourbon, daughter of the 
Duke de Montpensier, upon whom the office and title of Abbess 
de Jouarre had been imposed when but still a child. She 
escaped to Germany in 1572, and three years later married 
the Prince of Orange. Of this union there were six daughters. 
They were — 

(1) Louisa Juliana, married Frederick IV, Prince Palatine. 

(2) Ehzabeth, married Henri de la Tour, Due de Bouillon, 
and was the mother of the famous Marshal Turenne. 

(3) Catherine Belgica, married Philip, Count de Hanau, 
a ruling German family which became extinct in 1736, and 
whose possessions have been merged in Hesse. 

(4) Flandrina, Abbess of Ste Croix, Poitiers, who died in 
1640. 

(5) Charlotte Brabantina, married the Due de Thouars, of 
the famous family of la TremoiUe. 

(6) Emilia Secunda, married Frederick Casimir, Count 
Palatine. 

Charlotte de Bourbon died in 1582, and in the following 

year William took as his fourth wife Louise de Coligny, 

daughter of the famous Admiral de CoHgny, 

de Coligny ^^^ widow of Teligny , both of whom perished 
in the Massacre of St. Bartholomew. By her 
he had one son, Frederick Henry, and one daughter, Ren^e 
— thus having thirteen children in all by his four wives. 
Ren^e, whom Motley overlooks, died in France when she was 
seventeen years of age. 

Of WiUiam of Orange's three sons, the eldest, Philip, was 
alienated and left no heirs, and Maurice never married. The 
succession was thus left with Frederick Henry, the son of 
Louise de Coligny, who married Emilia de Solms, daughter of 
Count Solms Braunfels, head of a principality in close prox- 
imity to the States of Hesse and Nassau. By her he had one 
son, William, who succeeded him as Stadtholder, being 
William X of Nassau, and four daughters. Of these, the 
eldest, Louisa Henrietta, married Frederick William, Elector 



William of Orange 21 

of Brandenburg, ancestor of the present German Emperor. 
The second, Albertina Agnes, married her cousin, William 
Frederick of Nassau ; the third, Mary, married Louis Henry 
of Bavaria ; and the fourth, Henrietta Catherine, married the 
Count of Ostfrise, who governed East Frisia for the Kings of 
Hanover. With this enumeration of the family of William 
the Silent, it will be easier for the reader to follow the history 
of the Dutch royal house. 



CHAPTER III 

A BRIEF HISTORICAL SKETCH 

Although this work is not a history, some account of the 

pohtical events that make up the history of Holland between 

» *^^ ^^^^ ^^ William of Orange and the reign 

Assassination. ^^ Queen Wilhelmina is both appropriate 

and necessary. When William the Silent 
was got rid of by the act of a murderer the hope was indulged 
both at Madrid and Brussels that the separatist movement 
in the Northern Provinces would collapse and that the Bur- 
gundian possessions might again be reconciled under their 
liege lord. But things had happened that could not be wiped 
out. Between the Dutch and Spain flowed a river of blood 
that no bridge could span. Even if WilHam had left no 
successor the struggle would have gone on, and a leader 
would have been found outside the family of Orange-Nassau. 
But he left a worthy champion of his work and race in his son 
Maurice, who was barely eighteen years of age at the time of 
his father's death. 

The sentiment of gratitude to the father, combined with a 
fortunate discernment that the son would prove worthy of 

his ancestry, led the people of the three most 
Nassau. important provinces, Holland, Zeeland, and 

Utrecht, to proclaim on the morrow of the 
tragedy at Delft, Maurice their Stadtholder, and at the same 
time to make him High Admiral of their forces at sea. Their 
choice and confidence were fully vindicated within a few 
short years. 

For a time the prospect looked black for the Netherlands. 
Parma, the ablest of Philip's commanders, triumphed over 
the Belgians, and stamped out the Protestant factions which 
had gained temporary ascendancy in Ghent, Brussels and 

22 



A Brief Historical Sketch 23 

Antwerp. In one point his policy differed from Alva's. 

Alva would have massacred his prisoners, Parma banished 

the Protestants, who came to England and 

Parma. increased her industrial prosperity. It is not 
at all impossible that, if Parma had been 
left a free hand, he might have overwhelmed Maurice in the 
year 1588, but by Philip's orders he kept his troops on the 
coast in readiness for the Armada destined to conquer England, 
which never reached its intended port. In the following 
years he was directed, as soon as spring opened the campaign, 
to march into France to help the League against Henry of 
Navarre, and thus the full force of Spanish wrath and power 
was for a time diverted from Holland, and in the meantime 
Maurice of Nassau grew up. The death of Parma himself 
at the end of 1592 was equivalent to a decisive victory for the 
Dutch, as there was no one left to take the place of the Great 
Captain. 

In the meantime Maurice had won his spurs as a leader 
of men by the capture by stratagem of Breda which had baffled 
his father. The pressure on the south being thus reUeved 
he turned his attention to the recovery of the northern 
provinces. He regained Friesland, Groningen, Overyssel, 
and the city of Nijmegen in 1591. Gueldres came over to 
him in the following year, and thus the seven provinces were 
once more united. They all recognised him in turn as their 
Stadtholder, and in this manner the Northern Provinces 
again formed a single state under the House of Nassau. 

After these events Philip of Spain ceded the Netherlands 

to his daughter Isabella on her marriage with her cousin, the 

Archduke Albert, and an attempt was made 

IsabelS? through Belgian delegates to induce the 
Dutch to follow their example and submit to 
the new regime which was no longer Spanish, but which in a 
restricted sense might be termed national. The Hollanders 
would have nothing to do with what they called a sham 
government, and so the war continued with the old bitterness, 



24 Holland of the Dutch 

Maurice on one side with the irregular and uncertain aid of 
England and Queen Elizabeth ; Albert and Isabella on the 
other with the co-operation of Spain and the Empire of 
Germany ruled by Albert's brother Rudolph. 

The struggle with the House of Spain had been marked 
in its first phase by battles in the open field like Heiliger Lee, 
Jemmingen and Mook, - but it had long 
Nieuport** passed into the phase of sieges and counter- 
sieges. In the year 1600 Maurice resolved 
to give the war a new character by invading Flanders, and 
bringing his enemy to a pitched battle. This was the easier 
for him because he held possession of Ostend, which was then 
one of the strongest fortresses of the age. He advanced 
along the coast with a picked force of 15,000 men and escorted 
by his fleet. The Archduke marched with an almost equal 
force from Bruges to attack him, and when the two bodies 
came in sight Maurice ordered his fleet to return to Sluys, 
telling his men that they must conquer or perish. The result 
of the battle fought on the dunes at Westende near Nieuport 
was in his favour, but it did not greatly weaken Albert's 
power, and the Dutch troops returned to Sluys without having 
accomplished any durable results. 

Albert determined to obtain his revenge by the capture 

of Ostend, and began the attack on that place in 1601. After 

a seige of three years, rendered remarkable 

Ostend. ^y ^^^ valour of the garrison and the skill 

displayed by Spinola in conducting the 

operations against the town, Ostend made an honourable 

surrender. The desire for peace at last began to reveal 

itself on both sides, and in 1609 a twelve years' truce was 

concluded at Antwerp. In 1621, just as the truce came to 

an end, Albert died, and as he left no children the Belgian 

Provinces, in accordance with the deed of cession, reverted 

to Spain. War followed, and the Spaniards led by Spinola 

obtained several successes which culminated in the capture 

of Breda, 



A Brief Historical Sketch 25 

Maurice had had trouble within his own dominion. His 
quarrel with Van Barneveldt, followed by his summary 
execution and the popular behef that he wished to found 
a despotic power, had weakened his hold on the Dutch people. 
The public were further alienated by the execution of one of 
Barneveldt's sons, accused rightly or wrongly of having 
plotted the assassination of Maurice, but generally believed 
to be more innocent than his brother, who escaped. These 
facts explain how when Maurice declared the country in danger 
on Spinola's invasion, only a feeble response was made to his 
appeal and he consequently found himself unable to go 
to the aid of Breda. The capture of Breda thirty-five years 
earlier had been Maurice's first exploit ; his inability to 
relieve it caused him such grief that he retired to The Hague 
and died there of a broken heart. 

Maurice had never married and he was succeeded by his 
half-brother Frederick Henry, son of Louise de Coligny. 
. His father, William of Orange, was essentially 

Henry. ^ statesman rather than a soldier, while his 
brother Maurice was a soldier rather than a 
statesman. Frederick himself, perhaps the greatest member 
of his House, was both. If Maurice had been the ruler of 
a large country he would very probably have added his name 
to the list of great conquerors. The merit of Frederick 
Henry was in attaining the utmost possible results within 
the limits of his resources. He was " the father of his 
soldiers," but he was still more famous as one of the authors 
of the Treaty of Munster which closed the Thirty Years' 
War and finally established the place of Holland in the 
family of nations. Up to his time the Stadtholders had 
only been styled Excellency ; in 1637 Richelieu addressed 
him as Your Highness, and all the rest of the world 
followed suit. 

Frederick Henry continued the war in which his father 
was engaged and with better fortune. He captured Grol 
in 1627 and Bois le Due two years later, but it was not 



26 Holland of the Dutch 

until 1637 that he recovered Breda. He was the friend of 
RicheHeu and the ally of Gustavus Adolphus, but his 

tolerance was not great enough to propitiate 
Richelieu. the Belgians, who only required an assurance 

of their religious liberties to have joined the 
Northern Confederacy. No doubt the Dutch had lost patience 
with what was considered the trimming attitude of the 
Flemings towards Spain, and Holland came thus to regard 
Belgium very much as Ulster looks down on Munster. The 
times were not favourable to toleration, and men judged 
one another by hard and immovable tests. 

Frederick Henry died in the year of the treaty, indeed 
before it was signed ; and he was succeeded by his only son 

William, second of his name in Holland, 
^" Mafria'S"*''*' who had married our King Charles I's 

daughter. The Dutch people made no demur 
to his accession and if he had lived long enough the Stadt- 
holdership might have been made hereditary, but he was 
carried off by smallpox in the year 1650 before he had ruled 
two years. William II left a posthumous child also named 
William, but he was not proclaimed Stadtholder. The Repub- 
lican spirit, led by Amsterdam and Utrecht, reasserted itself, 
and John de Witt was elected to administer the country 
under the style of the Grand Pensionary. 

This was the period of the Commonwealth in England, 
and it is possible that the example of the one country reacted 

on the other, but the real causes of the national 
John de Witt, defection from the House of Orange-Nassau 

on this occasion and subsequently were the 
dislike of hereditary rule and the fact that it had no tradi- 
tional claim on the people of the Western Provinces where 
feudalism had never existed. It was, therefore, quite natural 
that John de Witt should be the ally of Oliver Cromwell, 
although the friendship did not prevent wars between the two 
States on questions of Naval and colonial competition. The 
Pensionary was also at intervals the ally of France, but this 




o 

< 

X 

w 

H 
H 

o 

< 

O 



A Brief Historical Sketch 27 

did not prevent the attack on the Netherlands by France 
and England as the sequel of the treaty effected at Dover 
between Louis XIV and Charles II. In fact, John de Witt 
was one of those idealists who proclaim the advantages of 
peace and who are beheved until it is broken. Very often 
this is accompanied by the discovery that the country is in 
great danger. De Witt's case was one in point. In 1672 
the French army under the command of Conde and accom- 
panied by Louis in person, invaded HoUand. De Witt had 
made no preparations to meet it and so far as he was concerned 
the country lay open to the invader. 

During these years the young Prince of Orange — ^the 
posthumous son of WiUiam II and Henrietta Maria of 

„,.,,. , England — as he was called, had been growing 
Wilham of *> i x 

Orange, up, and his ambition was qmte equal to 

i-e., that of any of his predecessors. He had 

wuiiam . fQj-jQgjj a.n Orange party, and the army looked 
to him as their natural leader. When the Pensionary fell 
from his position as a popular idol, the Prince was ready 
to step into his place. The assassination of John and his 
brother, Cornelius de Witt, by the mob of The Hague was the 
act of an enraged and alarmed people, but it cleared the way 
for WiUiam, the third of his name to rule the country since 
the severance from Spain, and also destined by a curious 
coincidence to be the third of his name as EngHsh 
King. 

When the French armies reached the neighbourhood of 
Amsterdam in 1672 William resorted to the supreme measure 

of Dutch defence by cutting the dykes and 
^Dykes. ^ flooding the country. To show the temper 

of the people, it may be mentioned that at 
the same time ships were collected to convey the inhabitants 
to a new home in America if the waters failed to hold back 
the enemy. The latter course was not necessary as the dykes 
did their work, and Louis with his two great Marshals beat 
a retreat. William followed up his success and the scene 



28 Holland of the Dutch 

of hostilities was transferred from Holland to Belgium. He 
also succeeded in arousing German apprehension at the growth 
of French power, and he concluded the first Grand Alliance 
with the Emperor and other German princes. 

But although his energy and fortitude had saved his country 
he could not gain battles in the open field. He was signally 
defeated by Cond6 at Seneffe (11th August, 1674), although 
the veteran's compliment that " The Prince of Orange con- 
ducted himself in every way like an old general except in 
exposing himself like a young soldier," somewhat lightened 
the sting of defeat. Nor were the following campaigns more 
fortunate, but he succeeded in keeping the scene of war 
outside Dutch territory, and when the Treaty of Nijmegen 
restored peace in 1678 Holland had lost nothing, while she 
recovered the privileges and possessions she had gained by 
the Treaty of Munster. 

But the Treaty of Nijmegen left the great problem of the 

Spanish Succession unaffected, and the Revocation of the 

Edict of Nantes — one of the colossal blunders 

Augsburg. ° of France — ^stirred up religious antipathies 

again. William became the centre of the 

anti-French movement which led to the league of Augsburg. 

At this juncture Charles H died, and William's other Enghsh 

uncle succeeded as James II. He was in sympathy with the 

religious policy of the French King, and it was clear that he 

would not join the Leaguers. The defection of England was 

a serious blow to William's schemes and the desire to avert 

it was the main cause of his interference in Enghsh politics. 

His wife, Mary, being James's eldest daughter, he came forward 

as the champion of the Protestant Succession, and succeeded 

in ousting his uncle and father-in-law from the throne. 

The story forms part of English history and must not 
detain us. After William had consolidated his position in 
the United Kingdom he sent an English army^ to the 
Netherlands and the Anglo-Dutch fleets co-operated. But 
William's military success was not greater than it had been in 



A Brief Historical Sketch 29 

the earlier wars. He was defeated at Steinkerk and Landen, 
but, on the other hand, his defence was well planned, and 

he kept the French out of Holland. In 
N^theriands. ^^^^ the King of France felt compelled to 

conclude the Peace of Ryswyck, which 
recognised William as Kiiig of Great Britain and 
Ireland. 

But although William had succeeded in so much and 
among other things in making his Dutch subjects more 

amenable to his authority than they had 

Dtes Out? ^^^^ ^^ ^^y ^^ ^^ predecessors, he had one 
great disappointment. He had no children, 
and the male line of William of Orange expired with him. 
During his last years he attempted to continue the succession 
in the Nassau family by making his cousin, Count John WiUiam 
of Frisia, his heir. This personage was descended in the male 
line from John of Nassau, brother of William the Silent, 
and his grandmother was the daughter of Frederick Henry 
and William's own aunt. But when William died in 1702 
his will was ignored on the plea that he had no power to dis- 
pose of the government of the country, and Holland reverted 
to the Republican form of rule, which it retained for the 
space of forty-five years. 

There was another consequence of the death of William. 

Louis XIV declared that the Nassau family was extinct 

and that the fief of Orange was escheated. 

PrincipaHty^ He occupied the little principality, which 

then disappeared from the map. Its nominal 

independence was more or less of a fiction. The French 

repeatedly occupied it during the wars and sometimes pillaged 

it. In 1662 they razed the fortress which Maurice had been 

allowed, as the ally of France, to construct there against 

Germany. But although the principality was lost the House 

of Nassau in HoUand has always clung tenaciously to the title 

of Prince of Orange, and the colour has always been claimed 

as its distinctive badge. 



30 Holland of the Dutch 

After William III then, the Stadtholdership being abolished, 
the government was again carried on by a Grand Pensionary 

who might be styled a sort of delegate for 
Heinsius. the States-General. Anthony Heinsius, a 

great jurist and diplomatist, who hated the 
French as much as William himself, was elected to the office, 
and it was with him that Marlborough carried on the business 
of the alUes during the long struggle of the Spanish succession. 
The great general found negotiations at The Hague extremely 
slow and difficult, and it has been alleged rightly or wrongly 
that many of his best laid plans went awry on that account. 
But Heinsius was not without some of the gifts of a states- 
man and when the war ended he secured for his country 
highly advantageous terms under the Barrier Treaty. By 
its provisions Namur and Tournai received Dutch garrisons, 
an army of 15,000 men was paid out of the Belgian provinces, 
and the Scheldt was closed to external commerce. From 
Belgium Holland received an annual subsidy of 1,250,000 
florins. 

Heinsius died in 1720, but even before his death the old 
sectarian and political differences, so evident under De Witt, 

began to reveal themselves. Holland, secure 
Friesland. against the external enemy, began to suffer 

from domestic feuds which sapped her strength. 
The union among the Provinces grew enfeebled, and only one 
retained the form of Stadtholder government. Friesland 
alone among the Provinces had continued to regard Count 
John William as its legal Stadtholder. In 1718 when Heinsius 
was growing old Groningen followed suit and in 1722 Gelder- 
land also proclaimed the Hoase of Orange. The most thickly 
inhabited parts of the State, including the centres of trade, 
retained the Republican form of government, and so for another 
quarter of a century there were two administrative systems 
existing side by side in the country. They might have con- 
tinued for a much longer period than they did but for some 
foreign complications which entailed a serious diminution of 



A Brief Historical Sketch 31 

national power and the loss of some of the advantages that 
had been gained during the long wars with Louis XIV. 

The Treaty of Utrecht gave Belgium or the South Nether- 
lands to Austria, but the Treaty of the Barrier, which was a 

kind of codicil to it, installed Dutch garrisons 
The Barrier • • i tj. j. 

Treaty. ^^ various places. It was not a very pro- 
mising arrangement and soon the Emperor 
chafed at it. In the war of the Austrian Succession Holland, 
like England, stood by Austria, and the Treaty of Aix-la- 
Ghapelle left the position undisturbed, but in the Seven 
Years' War the roles were reversed. England sided with 
Prussia and Holland remained neutral. These international 
comphcations had assisted the return to power of the Orange- 
Nassau family. The States-General without a head found 
themselves ill-equipped to cope with the diplomatic changes 
going on in Europe, and their losses in the earher war at the 
hands of the French Marshal Maurice de Saxe, who captured 
both Maestricht and Bois le Due, had rendered them less 
confident of their own super-excellence. 

Under these changed conditions the Count of East Frisia, 

Stadtholder of the three Northern Provinces, obtained his 

chance. He was a principal party to the 

Aix-U-^apelle. negotiations at Aix-la-Chapelle, and closely 

connected as he was with the House of 

Brunswick, he had less difficulty in recovering for Holland 

all she had lost. The revival of the privileges of the Barrier 

Treaty secured the revival in his favour of the suspended 

Stadtholdership, and in 1747 after an interval of forty-five 

years he was proclaimed at Amsterdam and The Hague as 

William IV. He did not enjoy the position long for he 

died in 1751 , leaving the succession to his young son, William V, 

on whose behalf a regency was formed under his mother and 

the Duke of Brunswick. 

The reign of William V was not at all fortunate. It was 
marked by an unfortunate and unsuccessful war with England, 
and by the repudiation of the Barrier Treaty by the Emperor 



32 Holland of the Dutch 

Joseph II. The Dutch garrisons were withdrawn from 
Belgium, and beyond doubt a sensible decUne in the European 

status of Holland became perceptible at this 

*th?"**^^f epoch. There was a corresponding decline in 

Belgium. ^^^ influence of the Stadtholder in Holland 

itself, and when the French invaded the country 
in 1795 the populace of the great cities rose in rebellion and 
proclaimed their own Republic. Wilham V, with his family, 
more fortunate than the French Bourbons, escaped to England 
in a fishing smack from Scheveningen, and made it his chief 
place of residence until his death, which occurred at Brunswick 
in 1806. ?>1 

The French government recognised the Batavian Republic — 
Holland's new name — as a friend and ally, and for ten years 

it was governed by the States-General. 
Republic!^" During that period the Dutch suffered many 

losses, some temporary and others permanent. 
Their fleet was practically destroyed at Camperdown and the 
Texel by the English, and many of their colonies — ^the Cape 
and Ceylon being the most important — ^were occupied by this 
country. On the other hand, for the seventeen or eighteen 
years of French military ascendancy on the continent Holland 
enjoyed internal peace and immunity from war. But events 
soon showed that she was not mistress in her own house. 

The establishment of his Empire rendered relations with 
a Republic disagreeable to Napoleon, and in 1805 he abolished 

that of Bat a via, recognising in its place the 
King^LouFs. ^' o^^er Dutch form of Dictatorship under a 

Grand Pensionary. Schimmelpenninck, an 
able man who had gained a reputation for moderation among 
the republicans, was raised to the post, and during the fifteen 
months that he held it he gained deserved praise. But even 
a Dictatorship or Consulate did not suit Napoleon's views 
or requirements, and in 1806 he made his brother, the very 
unwilling Louis, King of Holland. But Louis, far from prov- 
ing himself an autocrat, was most desirous of propitiating 



A Brief Historical Sketch 33 

the Dutch and gained amongst them the sobriquet of " the 
gentle King Louis." This did not accord with the Emperor's 
views, and in 1810, on his brother's abdication, he annexed 
Holland to France. 

This closing phase of French intervention in Holland 
proved brief, for the Empire had reached its apogee. In 
November, 1813, as part of the European uprising against 
Napoleon, a revolution broke out in Holland, and the French 
were expelled the country. In their emotion the Dutch 
again bethought them of their national dynasty, and sent 
an invitation to the Prince of Orange to return from England 
to head their efforts to expel the foreigner. The invitation 
was promptly accepted and a fortnight after the first out- 
break at The Hague the Prince, accompanied by his son, 
who had served on Wellington's staff in the Peninsula, landed 
at Scheveningen. 

After other projects had been considered, the Congress of 

Vienna decided to unite Holland and Belgium as the Kingdom 

of the Netherlands, and the Prince of Orange 

Union of became its first sovereign as Wilham I, 
Holland and . . . .-, ^- ^t, x-.i 

Belgium. ^^^ ^^^ assuming at the same time the title 

of Prince of Orange. The Union of Holland 
and Belgium was officially proclaimed at Amsterdam and 
Brussels on 24th February, 1815, and the recognition of 
King William was made in the same places on the following 
17th March, as the first sovereign of the Netherlands. Then 
followed the Hundred Days and the Waterloo Campaign, 
in which the young Prince of Orange greatly distinguished 
himself. 

During fifteen years Holland and Belgium occupied 
a place on the map of Europe as a single kingdom, but in 

August, 1830, the Belgians revolted, and the 
Revolution, result was that the two countries separated 

and spht into independent kingdoms. De- 
spite the split, the Dutch government has continued the use 
of the style of kingdom of the Netherlands. WiUiam I 

3— (2390) 



34 Holland of the Dutch 

reigned throughout the whole of this troubled period, but on 
its close he abdicated in 1840, and his son, the Waterloo hero, 
succeeded as William II. His reign proved short, for he died 
in 1849, and was in turn succeeded by his son WiUiam who 
reigned until 1890 as the third of his name. William III 
was twice married, but his children by his first wife having 
predeceased him, his only daughter by his second wife, Emma 
of Waldeck Pyrmont, ascended the throne, and is her present 
reigning Majesty Queen Wilhelmina. The Queen was born in 
1880, and married in 1901 Prince Henry of Mecklenburg 
(Prince Hendrik of the Netherlands), by whom she has one 
daughter, the Princess Juliana. 

The following genealogical table shows 

wihT^" , Her Majesty's descent in the female line 

Descent. from William the Silent and Louise de 

Coligny, and in the male line from William's 

brother, John of Nassau. 




H.R.H. PRINXE HEXDRIK OF THE NETHERLANDS 



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CHAPTER IV 

THE DUTCH CONSTITUTION 

Holland (meaning of course the Countdom) owed its first 
constitution to Mary of Burgundy. This was *' The Great 

Privilege " which added civic rights to the 
PrivUegef'^' ^^^ feudal law and opened civil courts, as 

opposed to clerical, for the laity. The 
privileges co-existed with the feudal dependence on the House 
of Burgundy and eventually on the Empire (to which Spain 
succeeded on the abdication of Charles V), but in 1582 the 
Dutch declared themselves free and independent of any and 
all authority, and the feudal tie originating in the days of 
the Carlovingians was broken for all time. 

The Constitution of 1582 left supreme power in the hands 
of the commonwealth or people. The Stadtholder was 

governor for life, but could not transmit his 
Stadtholder. authority to a successor. Moreover all his 

acts and decisions had to be ratified and 
accepted by the States-General. He had no control over the 
finances or the justice of the country. He could not declare 
war ; he could not make peace or an alliance. His authority 
was in every particular subordinate to and overshadowed 
by that of the parliament designated the States. 

If limitations were imposed on William the Silent at the 
height of his fame, it can easily be imagined that they were held 
more binding on his successors. The subsequent internal 
disputes may be largely explained on one side by the tenacity 
with which the Dutch people clung to their position as the 
dispensers of authority, and on the other by the resolution 
displayed by able rulers like Maurice, Frederick Henry, 
and William III to shake off the dependence which qualified 
their sovereign rights. The extreme measures that marked 

36 



The Dutch Constitution 37 

the course of the struggle were illustrated by De Witt's 
Perpetual Edict abolishing the Stadtholdership, by its repeal 
a few years later, and by the successive depositions and restora- 
tions of princes of the House of Orange-Nassau as already 
described. But the Constitution of 1582 remained in other 
respects unchanged down to the French Revolution. 

The eighteen years during which Holland was attached to 

France led to many changes and additions, and it was found 

that the simple and concise constitution of 

« 7^^ ^ t the sixteenth century was no longer adequate 

Fundamental . ., ,... , ^' ,- e 

La^^ for the conditions and complications of 

modern life. It was not, however, till the 
expulsion of the French that the Dutch got a chance of amend- 
ing their constitution, and at the same time adapting it to 
the requirements of an hereditary monarchy. For the Dutch 
people had at last decided not merely to welcome back the 
House of Orange-Nassau, but to vest the sovereignty of their 
country in its hands as a hereditary possession. It was, 
therefore, necessary to draft a new constitution, and the 
ministers and jurists were busily employed during the winter 
of 1813-4 in drawing up what was called " The fundamental 
law of the United Provinces." 

The need of a new constitution was rendered all the greater 
when it was ascertained during the progress of drafting it 

that it would have to apply, not to Holland 

^^^of the^^"^ alone, but to the United Kingdom of the 

Netherlands. Netherlands represented by Belgium as well 

as Holland. The first article enumerates 
the seventeen provinces for the kingdom, but after the 
severance of the two States in 1830-1 this clause died a 
natural death and ceased to possess any force. The consti- 
tution contained 234 articles, divided under eleven heads. 
Most of these are still in full vigour, and form the existing 
law of Holland. 

The second heading, under which are grouped sixty-five 
articles, comprehends the law of succession vested in Prince 



38 Holland of the Dutch 

William Frederick of Orange-Nassau {i.e., King William I) 
and his heirs of both sexes, the revenues of the Crown, the 
procedure during a minority, the case of 
Succession. regency, the King's inauguration {i.e., Corona- 
tion), the Royal Prerogative, and the State 
Council. Most of these clauses remain intact, and indeed 
the only notable change has been with regard to the annual 
sum allowed the Sovereign from the public revenue. William 
I received 2,400,000 florins (£200,000) a year; whereas 
Queen Wilhelmina gets only 800,000 florins (or £66,666) a 
year. 

The succession was to pass in the first place through the 
male line from WiUiam I, but females took their place in 
each generation after their brothers, or if there was no brother 
as the heir apparent. In other words, the daughter of the 
reigning sovereign preceded her father's brother. A pro- 
vision was also made that if William's descendants died out 
the inheritance should pass to the descendants of his great 
aunt, the Princess Caroline of Orange, who had married the 
Prince of Nassau-Weilbourg. Finally, provision was made 
for the case of " special events rendering necessary a change 
in the order of succession to the kingdom," when the King 
had the right " to propose a suitable successor to the States- 
General." If the King died without heir or appointed 
successor, then the States-General have the reserved power 
to select the person they deem most suitable to fill the throne. 
It must be noted that the succession law could not be 
apphed to the Province of Luxemburg, a fief of the German 
Empire, where the Salic law was in force. 
Duchy. ^^^ *^^^ ^^^ confirmed by the London 
Convention in 1867 proclaiming the neutrality 
of the Grand Duchy. When William III died in 1890, 
the Grand Duchy passed to his cousin Adolphus, Duke of 
Nassau, who in turn was succeeded in 1906 by his only son, 
William. On the latter's death in 1912 this branch of the 
Nassaus became extinct in the male line, and by a provision 



The Dutch Constitution 39 

of the old Nassau Family Law of 1782, ratified by the Luxem- 
burg Chamber prior to the Grand Duke's death, the succession 
passed to the last Grand Duke's daughter, the Princess Marie, 
who is now reigning Duchess. 

The new Constitution of the Netherlands of 1814 made the 

Sovereign the Head of the army and navy, and gave him 

the direction of external affairs. He was the 

Constitutk)n ^ source of honour, and had the right to bestow 
titles. He sanctioned bills before they could 
be placed before the Legislature, and he could veto its proposals. 
All these privileges have been modified by subsequent enact- 
ments and the States-General have acquired a freer hand in 
deahng with legislation. 

The new law of 21st of December, 1861, transferred many of 
the functions under the Constitution of 1814 from the Sove- 
reign to a New Council of State, of which the 
of State.^* Sovereign was to be President and the 
Heir Apparent a member on reaching the 
age of eighteen. It numbered besides a Vice-President and 
fourteen members. The supreme governing power may be 
said to he with this State Council. 

The legislature consists of the States General or " Staten 
Generaal." 

They are divided into two chambers. The first or Eerste 

Kamer is the Senate, sometimes loosely called the Chambre 

des Seigneurs, or House of Lords. The 
The States- 
General. second, or Tweede Kamer, is the Chamber 

of Deputies. The Chambers sit in the 

Binnenhof at The Hague, where they open their session on the 

third Tuesday of September in each year. The session begins 

with the taking of an oath, not to the Sovereign, but to the 

constitution and political probity. Members have some, 

but not many, privileges ; among others they cannot be held 

responsible in the courts of law for their speeches in the 

Chamber. On the other hand no act of the House has any legal 

force unless half the members are present. The Sovereign 



40 Holland of the Dutch 

retains one right of great importance as a check on hasty 
and prejudiced legislation. He can dissolve the Chambers 
of his own initiative. 

The Senate is composed of fifty members elected by the 
Provincial States, and returned for the period of nine years, 
with the qualification that one-third of the 
The Senate, number must retire every three years for re- 
election. Members of the Senate must be 
over thirty years of age and of course Dutch citizens. They 
are paid eight florins a day for attendance during the session 
and receive an indemnity for their travelling expenses if they 
reside out of The Hague. The Senate has no power of initiat- 
ing Legislation. It criticises, controls and corrects that of 
the Lower House. 

In the 1814 Constitution, members of the Senate were 

chosen for life by the King ; but this was changed to the present 

system in 1847. The Provincial States are 

^ Stetes?^^ delegates chosen in each Province by the 

three orders into which the people are 

divided, (1) the noble or knightly order, (2) the citizens of 

the towns, and (3) the country or agricultural population. 

The oath taken by the Provincial Representative on his 

election gives an idea of the dominating sentiment in Dutch 

political life. It reads — 

" I promise to observe the Fundamental Law of the King- 
dom without deviating from it in any way or under any 
pretext whatever, to conform with the regulations of the 
Province, and to do everything within my power to increase 
its prosperity." 

The Second Chamber contains one hundred members, 

and exists for periods of four years, a general dissolution 

excepted. Half the members have to retire 

Chamber! ^^^ re-election at the end of two years. Here 

again it is a condition of eligibility that 

members must not be under thirty years of age. A deputy 

receives an annual allowance of 2,000 florins, or £166. This 



The Dutch Constitution 41 

Chamber is the active partner in the legislature. All legisla- 
tion originates with it, and it has the right besides to depute 
two delegates to argue the case for any of its measures before 
the Senate. 

Down to 1897 the suffrage was restricted, but since that 

year the great majority of the people have possessed votes. 

The qualification for a vote is employment 

The Suffrage, or the capacity of earning. As an illustration, 

bargemen by virtue of their craft enjoy the 

franchise. But any hmitation at all is resented by the 

Sociahst leaders who are now agitating for Universal Suffrage 

pure and simple. 

Formerly there were only two Parties in the State, Liberals 
and Conservatives. Now there are four, viz.. Liberals, 
Catholics, Anti- Revolutionary Party, and Socialists. The 
Catholics and Anti-Revolutionaries worked together for some 
time and formed the Union Party, called by their opponents 
" The monstrous CoaUtion." At the last election the Anti- 
Revolutionaries lost many seats, and their influence in the 
country waned very much. The Administration has of 
late years comprehended members of all parties, and has 
been of the nature of a coahtion, but at the present time 
the predominant influence in it is Catholic. Dr. Abraham 
Kuyper, the veteran leader of the Anti-Revolutionaries who 
held office for six years from 1901 to 1906, has now retired 
from pohtical Ufe. 

The Dutch Chamber does not possess the absolute control 
over the national finance that the House of Commons has 
. acquired in England. This is felt to be 

Finance. ^^^ ^^^ grave a charge for men whose 
financial knowledge and other qualifica- 
tions have to be taken on trust. In Holland it is fully 
understood that the gentlemen who gain the votes of the 
electors may be very poor arithmeticians and ignorant of 
the principles of sound finance. They are consequently 
never allowed to feel the temptation of carrying out their 



42 Holland of the Dutch 

own theories and upsetting the fiscal system at their pleasure 
or through party prejudice, for this subject is withdrawn 
from their purview. 

There is a Minister of Finance, but he has to arrange his 
budget not to please the Chamber but to satisfy the require- 
ments and principles of a special body of 
Comptes. ^^ experts entitled the Cour des Comptes. 
This Court or permanent Commission is 
composed of seven members elected for life. It is true that 
the Chamber prepares a list of eligibles as candidates for 
appointment to the Court from time to time, but the selec- 
tion and appointment are made by the Sovereign alone. This 
moderating and revising body provides a barrier against 
revolutionary and subversive legislation striking at the root 
of national union and prosperity. It is an institution worthy 
of imitation. 

The Dutch Cabinet consisted of eight portfolios or great 

Departments down to the present year, but henceforth there 

will be only seven. The eight Departments 

The Cabinet. Were : Foreign Affairs, Justice, Interior, 

Finance, Army, Navy, Colonies, and Water- 

staat Industry and Commerce combined. The Army and 

Navy have now been merged in a single Department which 

is to be called that of National Defence, making a grand 

total of seven. 

The history of the Dutch constitution may be divided into 

three stages. The first stage was that when the Stadtholder 

was the nominee of the States-General, 

Mona^ch^. '^^^^ ^^^ ^i**^^ independent authority— 
so little indeed that for considerable periods 
he was even dispensed with altogether. This state of things 
continued to the French Revolution, after which the Dutch 
got such a surfeit of republicanism that when the French 
regime came to an end the country adopted for the first time 
monarchical institutions, and the House of Orange-Nassau 
was restored with privileges and powers it had never enjoyed 



The Dutch Constitution 43 

previously. William I of the United Kingdom of the Nether- 
lands was to all intents and purposes an absolute sovereign. 
Among his privileges were the nomination of the Upper House, 
a veto on all legislation, control of foreign poHcy, and the 
command of the army and navy. 

The third stage was marked by the curtailment of the 
personal power conferred on the King in 1814-5 by the legis- 
lative changes of 1847 and 1861. These 
Changes." changes made the Sovereign's authority 
less personal, and created a State Council 
as a buffer between the Crown and the Chambers. Although 
sociahsm has its followers, there is no reason to think that the 
bulk of the Dutch people are not perfectly satisfied with their 
political institutions as they exist. The demand for Universal 
Suffrage pure and simple, that is to say, every man over 
twenty-one years of age to possess a vote, has lately made 
itself heard, and no doubt it is a principle sure to be adopted 
sooner or later. 

It is the more likely to be adopted in Holland because the 
system practically exists there already, but when it comes 
it will be difiicult not to couple with it the concession of the 
franchise to women as well. Things move slowly in Holland 
and for the very reason that one problem cannot be settled 
without the other, Dutch pohticians are not hkely to be in 
a great hurry to alter the existing system. 

There is no need to attach any grave significance to the 
demand for Universal Suffrage in Holland because in the 
first place it would change very httle in the electoral body. 
In Belgium the position is quite different on account of the 
existence of the plural vote. In the second place, the problem 
of woman suffrage has not yet been taken into serious con- 
sideration in Holland, and in a country where everything is 
done by ancient custom and precedent great reluctance is 
manifested in grappling with the grave sex problem of the 
twentieth century. It is put as far as possible on one side. 

A fresh law has just been passed, during the session of 1913, 



44 Holland of the Dutch 

which introduces some slight changes into the legislative 
system. The first Chamber obtains the right to introduce 
amendments, and members of the second Chamber are to 
receive 3,000 florins a year instead of 2,000. The duration of 
the second chamber is prolonged from four to five years. 
The Queen is to receive 100,000 florins a year more, making 
a total of 900,000 florins or £75,000. 




H.M. QUEEN EMMA 



CHAPTER V 

THE COURT AND SOCIETY 

The Dutch Court, reflecting the life of the people, has never 

been what would be termed^a gay one, and simplicity is its 

main characteristic. Although Holland has 

The Hague, no proclaimed capital. The Hague ('s Graven- 
hage or simply Den Haag) has always been 
the seat of the Court, and there two palaces have co-existed 
since the reign of WilUam III, if not further back, as the 
residences of the sovereign. One, the Royal Palace in the 
Noordeinde, is still in occupation ; the other, known as the 
Huis ten Bosch (the house in the wood), is only used now for 
official purposes. For instance, the first meetings of the 
Peace Conference were held there, and pending the completion 
of the Palace of Peace, The Hague Arbitration Court still holds 
its meetings in this building. 

The Royal Palace is a low building of no great architectural 
effect, but^it contains some fine rooms, and is described by 
those who know it as a very comfortable residence. This 
palace was built by William HI of England and the Nether- 
lands for his wife, Mary Stuart, afterwards Queen of England. 
Behind it are extensive gardens, and in the square in front 
of it is the mounted statue of William the Silent. He faces 
the Palace, and watches, as it were, over the destinies of his 
dynasty. It is said that the reigning Queen found the warning 
gesture of her great ancestor a stimulus in her efforts to learn 
how to carry on the Orange tradition, as she regarded it, 
during the days of her childhood from the drawing-room 
windows of the Palace. There is a second statue at The 
Hague of William the Silent, on foot, in the centre of De 
Plein. 

The Court season at The Hague begins in October and ends 

45 



46 Holland of the Dutch 

at the commencement of June. During that period the Queen 
principally occupies herself with public matters, and regularly 

attends the Councils of State. If for any 
The Court. reason Her Majesty cannot attend, the Council 

is adjourned, for she is its President. For 
prominent ministers, officers, and public men to be invited 
to dinner or luncheon in the intimacy of the Royal Family is, 
of course, of common occurrence ; but there are only two 
State banquets during the season, and Court balls, although 
sometimes talked about, have still to be introduced. 

In June the Court moves to Amsterdam, where it is con- 
sidered indispensable that it should remain ten days. Banquets 

are given almost every night and for a week 
Annual Visit to ,1 >-v t. u x- x i 

Amsterdam. ^^^ Queen holds an open reception of her 

people. Every subject is entitled to pass 
through the Grand Saloon of the Palace du Dam — ^reputed 
to be the largest room in Europe — ^before the Sovereign, and 
most of them insist on shaking hands. It is said that Queen 
Wilhelmina thoroughly enjoys the ordeal, and probably her 
great popularity may be partly attributed to the evident 
pleasure she displays in coming into close touch with her 
subjects. At The Hague the barriers of a Court are not more 
easily passed than elsewhere ; at Amsterdam Court trammels 
are laid aside and the Sovereign comes down from the Throne, 
as it were, to participate in a popular manifestation. There 
is one fact in connection with the visit to Amsterdam which 
is interesting enough to call for mention. It costs the 
Sovereign nothing, for while it lasts he or she is the guest of 
the City. 

The Amsterdam visit brings the Dutch season to an end, 
and the Court then passes on to Het Loo, the Royal country 

residence, where it remains until recalled to 
Het Loo. The Hague at the end of September for the 

opening of the Parliamentary session. Het 
Loo (the Wood) is situated near Apeldoorn, in Gueldres, not 
very far from the eastern shore of the Zuyder Zee. The 



The Court and Society 47 

castle is surrounded by a deer park and woods, and the 
shooting is first rate. It was the favourite residence of 
William I of the Netherlands and his grandson, the late King 
William III, and forms part of the Queen's large private 
patrimony. Before Queen Wilhelmina's marriage the coverts 
were overstocked ; but Prince Henry is a great sportsman 
and the battues at Het Loo have in his time become 
famous. 

It was in the year 1898 that the Queen Emma's regency 
ended and that Queen WiUielmina was inaugurated as Sove- 
reign of the Netherlands at Amsterdam and 

wihT^" , The Hague. Three years later her marriage 
Accession. ^^th Prince Henry of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, 
raised a fresh outburst of loyalty, and although 
the Prince, now generally called Hendrik, was not very popular 
at first, he has quite lived down this indifference on the part 
of the public, and since the wreck of the Berlin steamer at the 
Hook, on which occasion he displayed great courage and 
resource, he has been quite a popular hero. 

The birth of the Princess Juliana in 1909 also assured the 

continuance of the dynasty in the direct Line. The Princess 

Juliana, named after her ancestress Juliana 

Juliana. ^^ Stolberg, William the Silent's mother, is 

blessed with particularly good health and 

high spirits, and has the credit of being the Ufe of the Court. 

Certainly the little Princess, or " Royal girl," as she is called 

by the people, takes an evident pleasure in the ceremonies in 

which she is allowed to figure, and many stories are told of her 

pretty pertness. 

Perhaps space may be made for one of them. A Dutch 
general with a particularly nice head of curly hair, attracted 
her attention and admiration one day, while visiting the 
Palace. When the time for leave-taking came the little 
Princess called out, " Good-bye, Curly Head ! " The Queen 
corrected her by saying, "Oh, you should not say that ; say, 
' Good-bye, General.' " With some difficulty the Princess 



48 Holland of the Dutch 

was induced to say with a little pout, " Good-bye, General," 
but as he got into his carriage to drive away she ran forward 
to the door shouting as loudly as a child's voice allows : 
" Good-bye, General ! Good-bye, Curly Head ! " and clapping 
her hands in childish glee. 

The Princess Juliana is still the only child of the marriage, 
and the heir to the throne. 

There is a third palace at The Hague, situated in that part 

of the Lange Voorhout which looks down the long avenue. 

Here is the residence of Queen Emma, the 

Queen Emma, widow of William HI, who acted so ably as 
Regent during her daughter's minority. Queen 
Emma is very much respected in Holland and of late years 
her principal attention has been devoted to the promotion of 
charitable works. A special fund named after Her Majesty, 
" Konigen Emma-fonds," fills the place of our Hospital 
Sunday cc '^ ':tion, and on New Year's Day and other public 
holidays cc actions are made in the streets by young ladies 
wearing white badges. It is hardly necessary to mention that 
Queen Emma is the sister of the Duchess of Albany. 

Mention has been made of the House in the Wood at The 

Hague, but interesting as is the House itself, it is the wood 

which is still more worthy of attention. This 

The Wood. is virgin forest handed down from a remote 
past. It may have been there in the time 
of the Romans ; it was certainly there six centuries ago when 
Jacqueline of Bavaria, Countess of Holland, hunted in the 
forest. This wood, which is beautifully kept, measures at 
least three miles in circumference, and is the favourite resort 
of The Hague citizens on Sundays, especially in the summer. 
There are Chinese kiosks, tea-houses, band-stands, and 
finally the House, with its beautiful rooms and their ornate 
decoration, just as it was constructed two hundred and seventy 
years ago to the order of Amelia de Solms, widow of the great 
Stadtholder, Frederick Henry, whose memory she thus 
honoured. 




H.R.H. PRINCESS JULIANA 



The Court and Society 49 

Society at The Hague is made up of the noble class, very 

limited in numbers, the official world, the army, retired 

officials, a few literary and scientific men, and 

SocSty. *^^ diplomatic corps. The aristocratic quarter 

lies near the Palace on the western side of the 

great lake called the Vijver. Here the Limburg-Stirums, the 

Van Heeckerens, the Van Zuylens, the Bentincks, and the 

Melvils, have their family houses handed down for at least 

two centuries. They are not very pretentious mansions, but 

they are far more spacious than might be imagined at a first 

glance from outside. 

The life of this society follows very closely on the lines of 
the Court. It is familiar and very intimate, rather than one 
of parade and ostentation. Dinners and small receptions 
are quite frequent, but balls are rare, and " crushes " are 
wholly unknown. It may be noted as a general rule that, 
except in the southern provinces of Limburg and Nord 
Brabant, dancing is not in fashion or favour with the Dutch. 
The presence of the corps diplomatique and the visit of foreign- 
ers of all kinds who are attracted to the capital on different 
errands give to life in The Hague a cosmopolitan character, 
which is not to be found in any other Dutch city. This is the 
more remarkable because the commercial influence which is 
the most leavening of all is entirely absent. 

Club life is also a notable phase in The Hague social 
relations. There are several leading clubs, some reserved 
to the members, others more hospitable open 
Clubs. their doors to strangers. Among the largest 

and most influential are, in the first place, 
the Besogne Societeit, the most exclusive, and, in the 
second place, the Witte Societeit (the White Club). The 
latter has a fine building on the open square known as De 
Plein, and another house in the Wood which is only open during 
the summer months. Clubs in Holland are essentially meet- 
ing-places for gossip and more serious talk and discussion. 
The coffee hour, as it is called, seems to go on all day, and 

4~(a39o) 



50 Holland of the Dutch 

there is no such thing in Holland as hurry and rush. This is 
not more evident among the leisured classes of The Hague 
than at the Raad or weekly meetings of the notables in the 
smaller towns or gemeente. There is always ample time and 
to spare for a talk, or if there is no one to talk to, for a cup of 
coffee, followed by its corrective in a glass of water, and for 
a smoke. 

There is another room in the Dutch club which is very 
much in request. This is the reading-room which combines, 
with an excellent library, a very comprehensive and con- 
stantly replenished supply of the principal periodicals of 
Europe and America. Here silence is obligatory. The 
only sound to reach the ear is the distant hum from the 
Conversations Zaal. 

Dinners are served in the clubs, but it is unusual for the 

head of a family to absent himself from dinner in his own 

house. This, the most important repast of 

Dinners. the day, is taken between five and six, and, 

as luncheon is not a heavy meal, as in Belgium 

and France, but rather of the nature of a snack, it is always 

made up of several courses. In fact, the Dutchman dines 

well, and as a rule he takes claret of good quality with his 

dinner. Bordeaux is the favourite wine in Holland, just as 

Burgundy is in Belgium. 

In Amsterdam and Rotterdam society is largely composed 
of the commercial class, and consequently a great many more 
meals are taken in restaurants than at The 
Arnhem. Hague, where life is chiefly passed en famille. 
In towns like Arnhem and Nijmegen, on the 
other hand, fashion follows the example of The Hague. Rich 
planters from Java, retired officials from the Indies, who have 
put by a nest egg or two, wealthy Amsterdam shipowners 
who prefer the air of the hills of Gueldres to the smells of the 
Amstel, congregate in these two pleasant cities, where exten- 
sive and attractive modern suburbs radiate from the older 
portions of the historic towns. Of the two, Arnhem, with 



The Court and Society 51 

its beautiful park of Sonsbeck, and its fine avenue to Velp, is 
the more attractive, and perhaps its claim to be considered 
the most charming place of residence in Holland cannot be 
disputed. In the neighbourhood, too, are many fine country 
seats, and the views from the hills overlooking the Rhine are 
fine and extensive. 

The Dutch are hospitably incHned. They will not merely 
invite their foreign friends to formal dinner-parties, but they 

will take them home with them for pot-luck 
Hospitality without any regular preparation or even a 

word of warning to their wives. The explana- 
tion of this readiness to bring a friend into the family circle 
unannounced — which is in striking contrast ^mh the practice 
in Belgium and France, where madame would never forgive 
her husband such an indiscretion — ^is no doubt the simple 
fact that a dinner in Holland is always cls good as the status 
and circumstances of the host will allow. It is never a scratch 
meal, and therefore a visitor is not regarded as an intruder, 
for he finds the Dutch family at its best. In this respect, and 
it is very far indeed from being the only point of close resem- 
blance between the two countries, Holland and England are 
very much alike. 

In Holland hfe both at the Court and in society is simple, 
and foUows the old customs. It is free from the rush of 
plutocratic competitors to fill the front rows and monopoHse 
attention. A man finds his place naturally by his own 
merit, his family claims, or the appreciation of his friends. 
A different world from ours — perhaps similar to the one know^n 
to our grandfathers — flourishes, passes its daily round and is 
happy under the grey Bat avian skies which are so near akin 
to our own. In the company of Dutch gentlemen and ladies 
one easily forgets that they are not EngUsh — only they are 
EngUsh of the Victorian age. 



CHAPTER VI 

RIVERS AND CANALS 

Water plays the largest part in the life of Holland, and has 

exercised the greatest influence of all extraneous circumstances 

in the moulding of Dutch character. The 

The Main country was won from the sea, and it has to 
Consideration , -^ , , . . m •, 

in Holland. ^^ preserved by constant vigilance and energy 

from the same enemy. The rivers and canals 

are the main arteries of national life, but they, too, have to 

be kept under control and in good order lest from a blessing 

they become a scourge. From year's end to year's end the 

uppermost thought in the mind of every Dutchman turns and 

revolves round the efficacy of the system of national defence 

against the arch-enemy, who in this case is not the ambitious 

human neighbour, but the dark mysterious ocean ever knocking 

at the gates of the sea dyke and trying and testing the hidden 

joints of the sunken barrier. 

" God gave the sea but we made the shore," is the Nether- 
lander's proudest boast, but to make it good requires a cease- 
less effort. Water is the care of a great special department 
called the Wat erst aat, and water figures more prominently 
than any other element in the folk-lore of the people. Where 
we say that we try " to keep our heads above water," the 
Dutchman puts it, " you must keep the water out," and the 
phrase reveals his mental as well as physical horizon. Dutch 
history in the past and in the present consists mainly in the 
accompHshment of that achievement. 

Napoleon called Holland the alluvion of French rivers ; 
if for the territorial adjective were substituted the specific 
names of the Scheldt, the Meuse, and the Rhine, the 
description would be true. The several courses of those rivers 
are augmented by further channels either created or improved 

52 



Rivers and Canals 53 

by human agency, such as the Waal, the Leek, and the two 
Yssels. The Yssel of'Gueldres is generally attributed to 

Drusus, the Leek to Civilis, and there are 
Channels. several claimants to the distinction of having 

linked the Rhine and the Meuse through the 
Waal. Of these the Waal and the Leek carry the bulk of 
the Rhine traffic to Rotterdam and the North Sea, 

Next to the rivers come the canals, which are of two kinds. 
One for ocean-going traffic, the other for internal traffic, which 

is either of home utility, or for the transport 
o7 Canals.^ of goods from Holland to Belgium, Germany, 

and France, and vice versa. The bulk of this 
traffic is with Germany by the Rhine, and it has been said 
that that country receives half its foreign food supplies 
through Rotterdam. Proportionally when it is remembered 
that Germany has at least eight times the population of 
Belgium, the traffic with the latter country by the Meuse and 
the canals is quite as great. 

The two principal sea-canals are those constructed for the 
benefit of Amsterdam, which lies on the southern shore of the 

unnavigable (for large steamers) gulf known 
Canals. ^^ ^^^ Zuyder Zee. These canals are called 

respectively the North Canal and the North 
Sea Canal. The former connects Amsterdam with the Helder, 
opposite the island of Texel, and the latter provides a direct 
route from the commercial capital to the North Sea at 
Ymuiden. 

When it was discovered after the great Peace, a hundred 
years ago, that commerce would be carried in ships too large 

for navigating the Zuyder Zee, the merchants 
Canal. ^^ Amsterdam were confronted with the 

prospect of finding themselves cut off from 
the outer world. To obviate this calamity. King William I 
sanctioned and encouraged the construction of the North 
Canal, which commences at Tolhuis (the Toll House), opposite 
Amsterdam, and traverses North Holland from south to north. 



54 Holland of the Dutch 

At Tolhuis is the great lock called Willemsslius, and at 
Wormerveer the canal takes a western bend to utilise the old 
lake of Alkmaar, whence the canal may be traced due north- 
wards to the Helder, the head station of the Dutch fleet, 
sometimes called the Northern Gibraltar. Alkmaar is also 
connected by water with Zaandam through the Marker Vaart 
canal and the Zaan stream. 

The construction of this canal was commenced in 1819, 
and completed in 1825. It was the work of a well-known 
engineer named Blanken, and cost eight million florins (or 
£666,666). Its breadth varies from 40 to 45 yards, and it has 
a uniform depth of 20 feet. Its surface is throughout below 
the level of the sea, at some places as much as 10 feet. The 
total length of the canal is 75 kilometres, or nearly 47 miles. 

But after thirty years had passed it was found that the 
North Canal did not suffice for the requirements of one of 
the greatest ports in the world. It was 
^ Canal. decided to pierce a new canal of larger dimen- 

sions through the narrow isthmus west of 
Amsterdam, where the girth of Holland is smallest [Holland 
op zyn smalst). The new canal is called the North Sea Canal, 
and has a length of 25 kilometres (or 15| miles) from Amster- 
dam to the sea at Ymuiden. The breadth of the canal ranges 
from 65 to 110 yards, and its depth from 23 to 26 feet. The 
works were commenced in 1865 and completed in 1876, and 
the total cost amounted to thirty-five million florins, or a little 
under three millions sterling. 

The entrance to the canal from the sea is protected by three 
powerful locks, and two piers projecting over 1,500 yards 
out to sea guard the approach and afford a further barrier 
against siltmg and corrosion. Powerful dredgers are also 
more or less continuously at work to keep the navigable 
channel clear. Two lighthouses stand at the extremities of 
the piers. The cost of the undertaking was borne by the 
city of Amsterdam and the State, but the sale of the reclaimed 
and reduced the burden by about ten miUion florins. 



Rivers and Canals 55 

Remarkable as the North Sea Canal was at the time of its 
construction, and confident as people were in 1876 that a depth 
of 26 feet would suffice for the requirements of the largest 
ships indefinitely, the development of large steamers has 
falsified these anticipations, and the North Sea Canal requires 
deepening and widening. A scheme was accordingly drawn 
up and approved, and work was commenced in 1911. It is 
estimated that in seven years' time and at a cost of about 
£1,100,000, the canal will be deepened to a depth of 14 metres 
or 46 feet, which is considerably lower than the Kiel Canal. 
A new lock at Ymuiden forms one of the most striking features 
of the undertaking. 

The canal is protected not only on the side of the sea, but 
also at its eastern extremity against the sands that are 
constantly shifting from the Zuyder Zee. At Schellingwonde, 
which is a few miles east of Tolhuis, the river Y. has been 
closed by a formidable dyke nearly a mile across from bank to 
bank. Half-way across are five locks in direct rectilinear 
succession, which allow of communication between the Y. 
and the Zuyder Zee without risk to the clear way in the 
canal. These locks are among the most remarkable in exist- 
ence, and are frequently visited as one of the most striking 
testimonies to Dutch engineering enterprise and skill. 

These are the two principal sea-canals in Holland. There 

is a third of minor importance in the Reitdiep, which gives 

access to Groningen from the Lauwer Zee. 
Other Sea 
Canals. ^^^ canalisation of the different waterways 

between the islands forming the Zeeland 

archipelago comes under the same head. Among the more 

important may be named the South Beveland Canal, which 

connects as it were the western and eastern arms of the 

Scheldt ; the Keete Canal separating the islands of Tholen 

and Duiveland ; the Dordsche Kil and the Noord channels 

of the Meuse forming the approaches to Dordrecht and 

Rotterdam from the south. These canals are flanked by very 

high embankments which completely cut off all view of the 



56 Holland of the Dutch 

surrounding country. They are the ramparts as it were of 
the islands of Walcheren and Beveland, which without them 
would be flooded periodically and finally submerged. This 
fate actually befell much of the latter of these two islands 
where the description " verdronken land " indicates the sites 
swept over by great inundations in the past. 

The larger number of Dutch canals, however, are not sea 
or salt-water canals. They owe their origin to two different 

motives or sets of circumstances. They were 
Canals!^ made first of all to control and turn into 

distinct channels the great volume of water 
coming from the overflow of the rivers Rhine and Meuse. 
The accumulation of canals at Amsterdam where there are 
six lines of water circumvallation, one ring within the other, 
is a striking instance of the way in which the flood waters 
have been regulated and made amenable to human direction. 
But the bulk of them were constructed from the motive of 
providing the country with the cheapest form of transport. 
In much of Holland roads could only have been laid down 
with great difficulty and at much cost, and they would have 
left the great problem of dealing with an excess of water 
untouched and unsolved. The Dutch realised that canals 
accomplished the double purpose of providing routes and 
diminishing the volume of water that had to be dealt with. 
In this respect they were only following the example of Flan- 
ders, where canals had been in existence from the eleventh 
century. 

The most important of these canals — the arteries of Dutch 
activity — are those called the South William, the Orange, 

the Dieren, the Drenthe, and the Terneuzen. 

William °Canal. ^^^ ^^^ ^^ these is the longest and most 
important. It was constructed with the idea 
of saving the great bend of the Meuse by providing a direct 
route from Bois le Due to Maestricht. It connects with the 
Noorden Canal near Weert, and through it effects a junction 
with the canal de la Campine, in Belgium. The last-named 



Rivers and Canals 57 

canal is more correctly designated that of the Scheldt-Meuse, 
and reaches the Meuse at Maestricht. The eastern branch of 
the William Canal reaches the Meuse at Roermond. 

The Orange and the Drenthe Canals connect with the 
Reitdiep and the Yssel, thus giving Groningen direct com- 
munication by water with the Rhine. The Dieren Canal 
connects that place with Apeldoorn and Zwolle. 

The Terneuzen Canal flows between the Scheldt and Ghent, 

half of it being in Belgian and the other in Dutch territory. 

The canal is less than 30 miles in length, 

Terneuzen. and the tonnage conveyed over it exceeds 

1,500,000 tons annually. Terneuzen is in 

Dutch Flanders, rather nearer Flushing than Antwerp. 

Canals and rivers, so far as goods traffic is concerned, play 
a more important part in the internal communications of 
Holland than railways, and it is only of late years that the 
development of railways across North Brabant has aroused 
public attention to the fact that speed and regularity in 
transmission are more than an equivalent for cheapness of 
freight. 

But hitherto no effort has been made to accelerate the 

barge service. On the canals the barges are still drawn by 

horses or their crew. On the Rhine and the 

Electric Power, ^^^^e tugs are frequently employed, and the 

larger barges with a capacity of between 

1,000 and 1,500 tons employ sails. But electricity as a motive 

power has not yet been introduced, although several projects 

are afoot to accelerate the canal service generally. 

A more important project relates to the canalisation of the 

Meuse above Venlo. This is a very old question, and the 

delay in dealing with it led in the past to 

of *the ^Meuse. considerable recrimination between the Dutch 

and the Belgians. The Dutch alleged that 

the Belgians were holding back because they feared that the 

exports from Li^ge would be diverted from Antwerp to 

Rotterdam ; while the Belgians attributed the delay to the 



58 Holland of the Dutch 

proverbial slowness of the Dutch. The efforts of a joint 
Dutch-Belgian Commission to promote a common under- 
standing seem now to have been successful, and before long 
the work may be taken in hand to provide a channel navigable 
for steamers of 2,000 or 3,000 tons burden between Venlo, 
Maestricht, and Liege. When this has been accomplished 
the minerals of Li6ge and Limburg will find a cheaper and more 
expeditious outlet to the foreign market than they possess at 
present. 

This description of Dutch canals would be incomplete 
without some account of the large population which makes 

its permanent home upon them. Estimates 
Population, place this population at anything between 

50,000 and 100,000 persons, and it must be 
understood that these people actually reside in their boats 
and barges, and have no habitation on shore. As a rule, 
the bargee owns his own tjalk or trekschuyt (the latter carrying 
passengers as well as goods), and the stem with an elevated 
poop is fitted up as a residence. It is brightly painted, and, 
in imitation of the typical Dutch cottage, has two or more 
windows with shutters in glowing colours. The brass work 
reveals " the rage and fury of cleanliness," which counts as 
a Dutch virtue. Finally, to complete the resemblance, plants 
and the semblance of a garden flank the tiller. This is the 
home of the bargee and his family. It is generally on the 
move, and it is only laid up for any length of time when the 
ice floes in the Meuse and the Rhine block navigation. Accord- 
ing to the census of 1909, 12,059 barges were returned as houses 
or residences,which would give a population of 50,000 at least. 
The canal population stands apart from the rest of the 
community and lives its own Hfe. After many generations 

it has become a close guild recruited from 
GuiW inside. The barge is regarded as a family 

possession just as much as if it were a farm or 
a shop. It is the source of livelihood to those connected with 
it, and when the young generation grow up their ambition 




< 



■ A 



Rivers and Canals 59 

is to acquire a barge of their own. The life of the canal 
population has been sketched in the following words : ** The 
children are born and grow up on the water ; the boat carries 
all their small belongings, their domestic affections, their past, 
their present, and their future. They labour and save, and 
after many years they buy a larger boat, selling the old one 
to a family poorer than themselves or handing it over to the 
eldest son, who in his turn instals his wife taken from another 
boat, and seen for the first time in a chance meeting on the 
canal." 

The following statistics will give the reader a fair idea of the 
magnitude of the traffic on the rivers and canals — 

Boats Proceeding beyond the Frontier by River. 
Number. Tonnage (in cubic metres). 

64,245 27,262,000 

Boats Arriving from Foreign Countries by River. 

Number. Tonnage (in cubic metres). 

73,475 29,289,000 

The bulk of this traffic is on the Rhine, which is checked 
first at Lobith on reaching Dutch territory, and subsequently 
at Arnhem for the smaller portion proceeding by the lower 
course of the Rhine in preference to the Waal. About 
five-eighths of this river traffic is under the Dutch flag ; the 
remainder being divided between Germany, Belgium, and 
France, the names being written in the order of the magnitude 
of their participation. 

The figures of the canals give a truer indication of the 
magnitude of the traffic by barges and of the number of persons 
concerned therewith. Here are some instances — 





Boats. 


Tonnage 
(cubic metres) 


Voorne Canal 


5,110 


336.000 


Walcheren Canal 


13,706 


1.997,000 


South Beveland Canal 


58.822 


13,617.000 


Merwede Canal 


62.036 


6.503.000 


Dieze Canal . . 


29,081 


4.145.000 



Of course, " boats " in the statistics signffies the voyage 



60 



Holland of the Dutch 



or passage of a boat. The total number of barges is not 
definitely ascertained, but must approximate to 50,000 (of 
which one-fourth are houses or residences) under the Dutch 
flag alone, and it is computed that they spend about eight 
months of the year in active work. The latest statistics as 
to the number of persons connected with them point to a total 
of 80,000, of whom probably not more than 50,000 live, as 
already stated, on the boats. Unfortunately, the official 
statistics are not absolutely clear on these points. 



CHAPTER VII 

LAW AND JUSTICE 

The Code Napoleon embodies the law of Holland, and justice 
is dispensed in accordance with its clear and simple provisions. 

The Courts of Justice are, in their order, the 
The Courts. High Court at The Hague (Hooge Raad), the 

Appeal Courts (Gerechtshoven) , the Arron- 
dissement Courts (Rechthanken) , and the Cantonal Courts 
(Kantongerechten) . Trial by jury in our sense does not exist. 
The board or conclave of judges takes its place. All justice 
is dispensed by trained judges, who must have obtained the 
degree of Doctor of Laws at one of the Universities. The 
Dutch hold firmly to the belief that to administer the law 
properly, it is necessary to be a master of the law ; in other 
words, a trained lawyer and jurist. For this reason the 
erratic decisions of emotional or ignorant juries are unknown, 
and opportunities for a plausible and eloquent advocate to 
work upon the feelings of the Court never occur. In Holland 
the law court is rather a dull place for the audience, and much 
of its work is done in what might be called the judge's private 
room and without reporters. 

The High Court is composed of a President, a Vice-President, 
and a number of councillors, generally fourteen, who form the 

board of trained consultants which discharge 
Court; ^^^ duties of our jury. Like all the courts 

in HoUand, it has its criminal and its civil 
side, no special courts or assizes being appointed or held for 
the former. 

The High Court, which sits only at The Hague, is the 
Revising Court, or Cour de Cassation, for the whole kingdom. 
It passes in review for final approval and ratification all the 
sentences and judgments passed or made by the courts below it^ 

61 



62 Holland of the Dutch 

with the few exceptions for minor ofiences which are dealt with 
summarily by the Cantonal Courts, as will be explained later on. 

Unlike om" Courts of Appeal, the Cour dc Cassation under 
the Code Napolion works automatically. No sentence can be 
carried out or judgment enforced until the High Court has 
reviewed and approved it. 

In criminal matters the High Court is moved by either the 
Minister of Justice or the accused. The retmns for 1910 
show 46 cases standing over from the previous year, and 
698 new ones submitted during the year. Of these 74 sen- 
tences were reveised, and 635 confu'med leaving 35 over for 
the year 1911. 

The Appeal Courts in criminal matters have to try cases 

that come up to them from the lower courts, or that are sent 

back to them by the Hidi Court 

Courts Taking the facts relating to their work 

in the same order as for the High Com't, 

168 cases were brought forward, 1,218 new ones came into the 

Hst, and judgments were given m 1,210, leaving 176 cases 

to be carried forward. A large proportion of sentences were 

quashed, 681 persons being released as against 711 condemned. 

There are five Appeal Courts (Gerechishoven) , each composed 

of a President and Vice-President, with twelve councillors, 

and of course the Registrar and clerks (greffiers), who keep 

the Court records. 

The Rechthanken or Trihunaux d' Arrondissenumt are really 

the Courts of First Instance, and number twenty-three in all. 

They try cases for the firet time, and they are 

Courto^ also a sort of Appeal Comt for the Cantonal 

Courts. In the former capacity 23,182 persons 

were brought before them, and of that number 1,674 were 

acquitted, 17 sent to lunatic asylums, 324 placed under 

Stale control, and 20,471 received sentence — the balance 

being implicated in unreached cases. 

On the appellate side 889 cases were put in the list, of 
which 58 were ciuried forward. Here a large proportion of the 



Law and Justice 63 

judgments from the lower Courts were quashed, 653 decrees 
being reversed as against 264 upheld. The statistics sUghtly 
vary, because in the former instance they refer to the number 
of cases, and in the latter to the number of persons interested 
or implicated in them. 

We now come to the Kantongerechten, presided over by 

Juges de Canton, who may be compared to our Police Court 

Magistrates. They possess a power of sum- 

Courts*°'^ mary jurisdiction in trivial cases, which is the 

only instance of the absence of the right of 

appeal in Holland. 

In 1910 156,714 cases were brought before the Courts, 
and out of that number 72,822 were not of a character to allow 
of appeal, that is to say, the penalty was a fine of less than 
25 florins, or the equivalent term of imprisonment for non- 
payment. As only 500 voluntarily paid off their fines, it may 
be assumed that the great majority of Dutch prisoners prefer 
a term in prison to parting with their money. 

The proportion of acquitted to sentenced is very small, 
only 5,603, as compared to 160,461. Nearly half these cases 
relate to what are considered trivial matters in Holland, e.g., 
damage to property, poaching, petty assaults, and disorderly 
conduct. A few months' imprisonment represent a heavy 
sentence, and a Juge de Canton will never think of imposing 
a longer term than twelve months. 

The Criminal Courts are extremely indulgent m Holland. 
Capital punishment was abolished in 1861, and the tradition 
of the law is to be as lenient and indulgent 
Sentences. ^^ possible to all offenders. As this gentleness, 
far from diminishing crime, has only resulted 
in increasing it and encouraging the law-breaker, some hard- 
headed men, able to look facts in the face without heeding 
the hydra-headed monster called Public Opinion, have formed 
a party which openly calls for the restoration of capital punish- 
ment. But, although it is not likely to succeed in its main 
effort, it may encourage Dutch magistrates to show some 



64 Holland of the Dutch 

courage in increasing their sentences and imposing adequate 
punishment on criminals. 

Although the Dutch are a northern people, inhabiting a 
temperate clime, they are as much addicted to the use of the 
knife as the Italian or Spaniard. Knifing is the most common 
offence in Holland. When two men quarrel over their cups 
in the drinking shops they settle it with their knives ; when 
two men hustle each other in the street out come their knives, 
and during the kermis men sometimes run amuk and stab 
whom they meet. In all such cases even where there is a fatal 
result, the offender is treated with the greatest leniency. Only 
last year a sergeant of the Colonial Army (Indische leger) ran 
amuk at Nijmegen, and drawing his bayonet stabbed several 
people, one of whom died. He received a sentence of three 
months' imprisonment. 

Offences against property, and especially breaches of trust, 

are more severely punished than attacks on the person, and 

with regard to them alone may it be said that 

Offences a^i"st ^j^^ punishment seems in fair proportion to the 

offence. 

In close connection with the working of the criminal law 

is the subject of the prisons (gevangeniswezen). These are 

of four kinds, in addition to labour colonies, 

Prisons. schools of correction, and probational training 

schools. There are special prisons, ordinary 

prisons, lock-ups for each arrondissement, and smaller lock-ups 

for the Cantonal Courts. 

There are only three special prisons with a total capacity 
of accommodating 441 prisoners. There are few life and 
long-term sentences. There are twenty-five ordinary prisons, 
which serve for short-term sentences and for periods of 
detention. These together can put up 2,250 prisoners. Each 
arrondissement has its own lock-up, so there are twenty-three 
of them. They can accommodate about 2,000 persons. The 
four main lock-ups are no more than police cells, capable of 
putting up only 46 persons. 



n 




THE LAXD HOUSE AT DELFT 



Law and Justice 



65 



The labour colonies — ^five in number — can provide for 

4,278 people ; the schools of correction for 264 ; and 

the training schools for 732. The total 

Colonies^etc. accommodation provided for prisoners 

and probationers reaches a total of 

10,000 persons. 

Bearing this total capacity in mind, it is interesting to note 
that the total inmates on 31st Dec, 1909, was only a Httle over 
7,000, divided as follows — 





Men. 


Women. 


Special Prisons 


244 


12 


Ordinary Prisons 


1,977 


75 


Lock-ups, arrondissements . 


1.074 


37 


Lock-ups, small 


23 





Labour Colonies 


2.797 


70 


Schools of Correction 


199 


27 


Training Schools 


616 


57 




6.930 


278^ 7.208 



In these figures are included nearly 700 cases of persons 
detained in the lock-ups pending trial. 

Prisoners are kept at di:fferent kinds of work, and, as far as 
possible, tasks of a remunerative chaxacter are chosen. A 
portion of the sum thus earned is retained for the benefit 
of the prisoners on release, and the sum given is apportioned 
to the needs and prospects of the individual case. One of the 
most gratifying features in Dutch hfe is the comparative 
rareness of female crime — females charged being only 5 per 
cent, of males, and of prisoners only 3 per cent. 

As has been said, the tendency of Dutch law and opinion 

is to make the sentence as Httle severe as possible. The 

judge has the right to grant a delay in the 

Respite? serving of a sentence, that is to say, avec 

sursis. It is one of the merits of the Code 

Napoleon. When the sentenced person can show that the 

immediate serving of the sentence would be especially hard 

and injurious on him he is allowed a respite which may cover 

a period of several months. It is very rarely indeed that 

3— (3390) 



66 Holland of the Dutch 

this kind of parole is broken, but it is indicative of the simple- 
ness of Dutch Hfe that such an arrangement should be possible. 
There are crimes in Holland as in every country, but the 
professional criminal hardly exists at all. 

A few words may now be said about civil actions, which 
are tried by the Courts already enumerated. 

The High Court revises the judgments of the lower Courts, 

but in civil matters also considers cases referred to it from the 

Colonies. It also tries cases of high treason, 

Actions. pirs^cy, and acts of war against a friendly 

Power, but instances under these heads are 

so rare that this function of the High Court is almost forgotten. 

Its work in 1910 related to 137 cases in all — 50 brought forward 

and 87 additions to the list. Of these 95 were dealt with, 

leaving 42 for the 1911 session. Of these judgments 8 were 

annulled, 19 sent down for re-trial, 63 confirmed, 1 declared 

outside the Court's jurisdiction, and 4 withdrawn. 

The greatest number of cases come before the Arrondisse- 
ment and Canton Courts, the latter corresponding for them 
to our County Courts. These relate mostly to small debts 
and legacies. A large number of these cases are settled out 
of court, as we should say, only the cantonal judges sign the 
settlements. There were 79,015 such cases in 1910, and 
among the others were as many as 12,699 not admitting of 
appeal because the amount at issue was less than twenty-five 
florins. 

There is another characteristic legal tribunal in Holland, 

the like of which is not to be found elsewhere. This is a 

Consultation Bureau, which is found attached 

^ ^Burelu^*'*^" ^^ ^^.ch provincial Court. The poor Htigant 

can obtain from it not merely gratuitous legal 

advice, but also practical help, for if there is a genuine case 

an advocate is appointed to plead for the party before the 

proper Court, that is to say, either of the Canton or the Arron- 

dissement. In criminal cases also the judge will never allow 

a prisoner to be tried without legal defence. 



Law and Justice 67 

The code of honour is very high at the Dutch Bar. There 
exists in every town, where there is a Court, a society or club 
of all barristers resident in the locality. A 
^Bar" ^ committee is dispensed with because all are 
members on an equal footing, and the oldest 
barrister present takes the chair when the business seems to 
require a president. Any member can bring cases of unpro- 
fessional conduct before the society, and if it were found that 
such had been committed of sufficient gravity, the offender 
would be dismissed from the society and forbidden to appear 
in any Court. Instances of its being necessary to proceed to 
this length are rare, but gentle reprimands and exhortations 
to uphold the strict etiquette and honour of the Bar are 
common, and thus it may be said that Dutch barristers 
stimulate one another. 

As Holland is a great commercial country, it is not surprising 
to find that failures are rather numerous and that fraudulent 
bankruptcy is not unknown. 

In 1909 1,788 persons, 7 firms, 18 limited companies, and 
13 unlimited companies failed for a total indebtedness of 
19,862,000 florins. Di\'idends seem to have been recovered 
for 3,549,000, leaving a net loss of 16,313,000 florins. Of 
these cases, nine were pronounced fraudulent bankruptcy. 
Imprisonment for debt is enforced under special circumstances ; 
first of all for fraud, and, secondly, if there is any reason to 
think that the debtor may abscond. A considerable number 
of persons are detained in the lock-ups until the exact cir- 
cumstances of their failure to pay has been ascertained. 
These cases relate generall}^ to small sums, chiefly for taxes 
and fines. 



CHAPTER VIII 

EDUCATION 

The system of education in Holland is very simple and 
practical. Primary education is compulsory between the 

ages of seven and thirteen, but its application 
SclioSZ ^^ ^^^^ ^^ ^^^ ^^ possible to voluntary private 

agencies, and it is only where these are lacking 
that the State steps in to combine with the local authorities 
(i.e., Provincial and Communal) in providing public ones. 
In the last twenty years the numbers in the private schools 
have increased far more rapidly than in the public schools — 

Public Schools. Private Schools. 

Year. Boys. Girls. Boys. Girls. 

1910 313,000 249.824 150,347 190,971 

1890 251,114 203,812 83.331 104.721 

In 1910, therefore, 463,347 boys and 440,795 girls were 
receiving primary education in HoUand, making together a 
grand total of 904,142. Of that total nearly 95 per cent, were 
regular attendants. A very elaborate table, prepared each 
year, shows the maximiun number of attendances that the 
scholars of all the primary schools might have attained, and 
the total of absences divided into the two categories " with 
permission " and " without permission." This table shows the 
very remarkable results of 5*24 per cent, of absences with 
permission, and only '83 without permission, or 6'07 per cent, 
together. In the Roman Catholic schools the ratio was still 
lower, being only 4*23, and in the Jewish lowest of all, or no 
more than 3*66 per cent. 

Of these totals 119,629 boys and 95,287 girls in the public 
schools, and 25,374 boys and 37,502 girls in the private 
schools, were receiving their education free. 

The number of primary schools was in 1910, the year to 

68 



Education 69 

which all these statistics apply, 3,289 public schools and 

2,016 private. Of the latter, 1,889 claimed and received a 

subvention from the State under Article 59 

Scholars. ^^ *^^ Education law. As they receive no 

assistance from local funds, they are not 

amenable to the communal authorities. 

Instruction was imparted in these schools by a staff totalling 

(in 1909) 29,298 persons. It is divided into three grades 

Teaching for both sexes, viz., head teachers, assistant 

Staff. teachers, and student assistants. The 

numbers of each class were as follows — 





Head 
Teachers. 


Assistant 
Teachers. 


Student 
Assistants 


Males . . 
Females 


. . 4,675 
598 


11,422 
9,378 


1,336 
1,889 



These figures give the high average of one teacher for 
thirty scholars. 

The State expenditure on primary education in 1909 
amounted to 21,073,000 florins (or £1,756,083 approx- 
imately). This sum is subdivided into grants 
s4te.° to communes, grants to private schools, 
training schools for teachers, pensions for 
teachers, and cost of examinations. 

AU examinations, whether in public or private schools, are 
conducted under the supervision of Government Inspectors. 
There are three Inspector-Generals, twenty-five District 
Inspectors, and ninety-four Sub-district Inspectors. The 
first two grades are paid regular salaries, viz., £350 and £235 
per annum (circa) respectively ; while the last only receive 
their travelling and personal expenses. 

Two of the special features of the Dutch system of primary 
education (and primary education everywhere represents 
that to which the bulk of a nation can alone be subjected) are 
the training of the teaching staff and the frequency of the 
testing examinations. 



70 Holland of the Dutch 

In the first place, no one can teach in Holland without 

having passed a Government examination adapted to the 

grade he or she fills in the educational service 

^ Staff! *"^ ^^ ^^^ country. This appUes to the private 

teacher as well as to those in State employ. 

A fresh examination has to be passed prior to promotion from 

one grade to another, and these examinations are not made 

too easy. The principle of examining those entrusted with 

the instruction of the young is so rigorously applied that even 

foreigners imported for the piu*pose of teaching their own 

language have first to satisfy a board of Dutch examiners as 

to their capacity to teach their own tongue. In 1909 the 

State expended 1,562,791 florins in normal schools or other 

training courses for teachers, and the communes devoted 

208,892 florins to the same purpose. 

The second merit of the system is the closeness of the 

inspection which takes place twice a year, accompanied by 

examinations which aim principally at ascer- 

Examinations. Gaining whether the pupils are making satis- 
factory progress in their promotion from one 
class to another. While it is ostensibly an examination of 
the pupils, it is also indirectly a testing of the masters, and 
as the inspection is made at irregular intervals owing to the 
numerous engagements of the inspectors, the staff is kept on 
the tenterhooks of anxiety until the ordeal is over. In 
addition to the State examination, communes have the 
right at any time to institute an inquiry of their own, 
accompanied, of course, by an examination of schools 
receiving their support. Some writers have said, " There is 
a fury of cleanliness in Holland." In the matter of education 
the rage is one for examinations. 

The new educational system, which dates no further back 
than 1900, has done much to put an end to the illiteracy 
which existed so widely in Holland before its introduction. 
There are no returns to show the state of the case for the 
whole community, but returns are available for three classes 



Education 71 

of men : first, the annual contingent of young men of 19-20 
for the Army; secondly, scholars admitted to regimental 

schools ; and, thirdly, prisoners. The 
Illiteracy. following table shows the difference in 

the percentage of illiterates in each category 
for 1900 and 1910— 





Regimental 




Contingent. 


Schools. 


Prisoners. 


lO 2-3. 


22-3 


15-9 


10 


23-7 


10-9 



The curious increase of illiteracy among the entrants to 
regimental schools is to be explained by the fact that those 
who " read and write badly " are now classed among illit- 
erates. The return may, however, show that a good many of 
those who leave the primary schools at the age of thirteen have 
forgotten what they learnt there by the time their military 
obligations commence seven years later. 

The subjects taught in the lower classes of the primary 

schools are the three R's, but in the two higher forms — 

the majority of these schools are divided into 

Taught. ^^^^ forms — ^geography, history, and an 

optional subject, which may be either botany 

or drawing, are added. Geography, history, and especially 

national history, are simplified by chromolithographs and 

drawings which cover the walls not only of the class-rooms 

but of the corridors as well. The subjects illustrated are 

generally of a patriotic order. The blackboard is in frequent 

use for purposes of illustration. Drawing is in special favour 

with pupils, as well as teachers, and the greatest facilities 

are placed in the way of the development of latent 

artistic talent. 

Music, so far as chorus singing implies such knowledge, is 
part of the curriculum, and in the girls' schools sewing is 
taught. A simple gymnasium is attached to each school, and 
the boys are drilled sufficiently to be able to march in order. 
But at thirteen boys and girls alike end their schooling, and 



72 Holland of the Dutch 

enter upon the serious business of life. If they have attained 
the final grade and pass an outgoing examination to the 
Inspector's satisfaction, they are allowed to leave at twelve. 
This, of course, applies to those (the great majority) who 
have no intention or chance of proceeding to the secondary 
schools. 

The salary of the headmaster of a communal school is 
small. From the State he receives no more than 700 florins. 

to which the commune adds a further sum of 
Salaries. (generally speaking) 500 florins, making 

together about £100 a year. He is also pro- 
vided with a free house which, whenever possible, must have 
a garden attached to it. A small deduction of 2 per cent, 
is made from the salary by the State, which in return gua- 
rantees a pension, after the age of sixty-five, or on retirement 
earlier through ill-health, ranging from two-fifths to two-thirds 
of the salary. 

We now come to the question of secondary or intermediate 
education {middelbaar onderwijs). The schools under this 

system are of several categories. There are 
Educati^. Lower Schools, Industrial Schools, Drawing 

Schools, and Professional Schools. In 1909 
they numbered altogether 362 schools, with an attendance of 
33,969 and a teaching staff of 2,804. The average total of 
scholars per school is, therefore, about ninety, and for each 
teacher there are twelve pupils. Too much stress must not 
be laid upon this proportion because there is a teacher for 
every subject, and some give only one, or at the most two, 
lessons or lectures a week. 

The lower schools are chiefly evening schools, at which 
the education of the primary schools is carried on some stages 

further. In them the course of instruction 
School? ^^ guided by the trade or profession which 

the scholar either intends to follow or has 
already begun to practise. There are forty-eight schools 
of this character with a nominal total of 8,163 in attendance. 



Education 73 

Here the teaching staff consists of 118 permanently attached 
teachers and 564 occasional or special teachers. The course 
is an obligatory one for three years, and there is an entrance 
and also a passing out examination. The average number of 
failures at the former is 27 per cent., and at the latter 22 per 
cent. 

The instruction at these schools includes one or more foreign 
languages, book-keeping, and advanced drawing. There are 
also classes for science and music. 

Industrial and Drawing Schools are grouped together, and 
in the same building will be found separate rooms or halls 
assigned to drawing, painting, art embroidery, 
Education. carpentry, and smith's work. They are 
technical schools, in which instruction is 
imparted under the most competent staff on the basis 
of a three years* apprenticeship. Nowadays no one in 
HoUand can dream of getting employment as a carpenter, 
or a smith, or a cabinet-maker, or upholsterer, who has 
not passed through his course creditably at one of these 
Teeken-en-Industriescholen. There are 222 such schools, with 
an attendance of 14,081 and a teaching staff of 1,101. In 
1900 there were only 82 schools, 8,653 pupils, and 474 
instructors. The great increase has been on the technical 
side, and these schools are undoubtedly doing the best 
training work in HoUand to-day. 

In the last place, among the secondary schools, come the 
professional schools. These are divided into two grades, 
Lower and Upper. The latter are called Ambachtsscholen 
for boys, and Industriescholen voor meisjes {i.e., for girls). 
Of the former there are 64 schools, with an attendance of 
6,435, and a teaching staff of 626 ; and of the latter 26 schools, 
with 5,290 pupils, and 395 teachers. Professional schools 
mean what the word implies, only the basis of instruction in 
the lower grade is entirely non-classical. Several modern 
languages, algebra, natural science, and botany form the 
principal items in the curriculum. 



74 Holland of the Dutch 

In the upper grade professional schools {Hoogere Burger- 

scholen) a classical, as well as modern, side is to be found, 

and the complete course is one of five years. 

S^chool?^ The Burger schools are the nearest approach 

to the English grammar school. There are 

only 81 of them altogether, with 10,663 boys and 1,298 

masters. There are similar schools for girls, 15 in all, with 

an attendance of 1,646, and a teaching staff of 196 lady teachers 

and 42 men. But 2,347 girls attended the boys' Burger 

schools in mixed classes. The average ratio of failures to 

pass the entrance examination is for boys 16 per cent., and 

for girls 10 per cent. A very large proportion fail and 

leave at the end of the first year, and at the final passing out 

examination the proportion of failures is 15 per cent. 

We come now to Higher Education, under which heading 

are grouped the Technical Academy, the four Universities, the 

medical course, and the gymnasia. To take 

Edu?ation. ^^® ^^^^ named first. These are the most 

important schools in Holland, where young 

men are trained before going to the Universities or entering 

the prescribed Governmental course of instruction and 

examination for the liberal professions. 

In 1909 there were 30 gymnasia all receiving pupils of both 
sexes. The number attending was 2,250 young men and 603 
young ladies. In 1895 it was 2,495 young men and only 100 
young ladies, and these figures give a not unfaithful idea of 
the growth of higher female education. The number of 
professors attending in 1909 was 456. 

The Gymnasia are the nearest approach to the English 

Public School. Admission begins at twelve years of age, and 

the course is for six years. Instruction is 

Gymnasia. given in both the classics and foreign languages 

(French, English, and German), and all the 

subjects are compulsory. Many critics declare that too many 

subjects are taught, and that in consequence the knowledge 

of foreign languages in particular is not at all deep or thorough. 




H 



H 



Education 75 

The Technical Academy contained 1,198 male and 57 female 
students on the roster. They are classed according to the 
branch of the public service or the profession they intend to 
enter. They are chiefly engineers (subdivided into six 
different categories) and architects. There is a stiff 
entrance examination, and the course is one of three years. 

The Universities are the four historic ones of Leyden, 

Utrecht, Groningen, and Amsterdam, and the Free University 

at Amsterdam. Leyden was founded in 

Universities. ^^7^' Groningen in 1624, Utrecht in 1636. 
Amsterdam (previously the Illustrious Ath- 
enaeum) in 1875, and the Free in 1880. All the Universities have 
five Faculties, viz., theology, law, medicine, science, physics 
and mathematics combined, and letters. Students of both 
sexes are received at all except the Free, which is a small 
institution with only 160 theological students on its register. 
The numbers inscribed at the four others were, in their 
numerical order — 





Males. 


Females 


Leyden 
Amsterdam 
Utrecht 
Groningen . . 


. 1,116 

. 1,096 

. 1,063 

510 


152 
190 
185 
134 


Free University 
(Calvinist) 


3,785 
160 


661 



3,945 

Giving a grand total of 4,606 of both sexes undergoing 
University training. 

It is rather difficult to classify the favourite courses at each 
University, but theology has most followers at Utrecht and 
the Free University, law at Leyden, medicine at Amsterdam, 
science at Amsterdam and Utrecht, and letters at Groningen. 
The degrees conferred by all the Universities are those of 
Bachelor and Doctor, and several examinations — those for 



76 



Holland of the Dutch 



Candidature, Promotion, and Doctorandus — have to be 
undergone during the course. 

The Universities cost the State a net sum of 2,701,100 

florins, and the Communes contribute 301,000 florins, so that 

Holland pays £250,000 for providing the 

Expenditure, elite of her citizens with University education. 

The Gymnasia cost the State 373,000 

florins and the Communes 439,000 florins, or 812,000 together. 

The charge of the Technical Academy, viz., 905,000 florins, 

is borne by the State alone. 

Secondary education in all its forms costs the State 
2,338,000, the Provinces 257,000, and the Communes 2,158,000 
florins, or 4,753,000 florins together. Thus the total expen- 
diture on education of all kinds in Holland by the State, the 
Provinces, and the Communes was, in 1909, 40,297,000 florins, 
or about £3,358,000. 

Among other educational establishments in Holland may 

be mentioned the State School of Agriculture at Wageningen. 

Since 1905 it has been divided into three 

Agricultm-e. departments : Higher School of Agriculture, 
Horticulture and Forestry, School of Agri- 
culture, and the Lower School. There were 243 students in 
the two former sections in 1909, and the institution is growing 
in importance and popularity. 

After the course at Wageningen, the student of forestry 
can attend the State courses on the Van Sweeten properties, 
where woods are developed and tended on scientific principles. 

Very important schools of a different character are those of 
navigation. There are eleven in all, with 857 students and 
101 professors. Diplomas are granted for the different grades 
in the merchant service, and without them no one can be 
employed even as captain of a fishing smack. 

Finally, a word may be said about the physically incapa- 
citated. There are three deaf and dumb schools at Gronin- 
gen, Rotterdam, and St. Michielsgistel, and one school for the 
blind at Amsterdam. 



Education 77 

Enough has been said to show that the educational system 
of Holland is as well organised and equipped as any in the 
world. The development of the technical schools in the last 
four or five years is quite remarkable, and primary education 
will probably show more definite or rather durable results 
in another generation. 

The system of hoUdays is rather curious in Holland. The 
period of the vacation is fixed by law at ten weeks, but 

no specific date is named for it. This is left 

to the discretion of the headmaster, who 
is only enjoined to select the period when the services of the 
boys and girls may be most useful to their parents. This is 
not unnaturally assumed to be during the time of harvest, 
and the ten weeks' vacation is generally taken as a whole. 
From the end of July, then, until the beginning of October all 
the schools in Holland are closed. There are no holiday tasks, 
and it may be imagined that during this lengthy absence much 
learnt in the preceding months has been forgotten by the time 
the schools re-open. Perhaps this is a defect in the Dutch 
system, affecting primary education more particularly, but 
as it suits the convenience of both masters and parents, the 
arrangement is not likely to be altered. 

Primary schools exist in Holland solely for the purpose of 
imparting instruction, and thus removing the reproach of 

illiteracy against the mass of the nation. 
System.^^" In the higher-grade schools the object is to 

prepare the scholars for the examinations 
which are the indispensable conditions of employment and 
entrance to the professions. Life at the Universities is on 
the same lines. The main object of education in Holland is 
cut and dried as the acquisition of book-learning. Formation 
of character is not yet thought of, because school has no hold 
on the mind of the scholars as a place of association. The 
Dutch boy does not feel any pride in the particular school he 
attended, and this is more or less true of the Universities as 
well. As there are no colleges, students reside either at home 



78 Holland of the Dutch 

or in apartments, if their homes are away from the University 

town they attend. 

The worst that can be said against the Dutch system of 
higher education is that it is strictly utiHtarian. It is not 
hkely to produce an Erasmus or a Grotius, but for the work- 
aday needs of a modern nation it will serve as well as any 
other. 



CHAPTER IX 

THE DUTCH ARMY 

When the great part taken by the Dutch Army in the wars 
of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries is remembered, 

it cannot be denied that it no longer plays 
Wars ^^^ same prominent role in Europe. In 

those days the Dutch claimed to ha\e as big 
a voice as any other country in shaping the map of our Con- 
tinent ; now they will be weU satisfied if the Army suffices 
to preserve their hard-won independence. 

For a long period it was held that this independence was 
not in danger, and therefore the Army was neglected, with 
the result that it sank in numbers and in that efficiency for 
modem war which can only be acquired by a generous and 
sustained expenditure. Quite recently Dutch opinion became 
ahve to the fact that its armed forces were unequal to the 
task of defending the bulk of the country at all, or the most 
favoured part of it, that behind the Water Line defences, for 
more than a few months. Thereupon there was a demand 
for reforms, and it proved sufficiently strong to secure for the 
Government popular support in introducing measures which 
considerably increased the numerical strength of the regular 
Army and substituted for the antiquated and useless Schut- 
terij an efficient landwehr which in this case may be described 
as a useful territorial force. 

The organisation of the Dutch Army rests primarily on the 
law of 1861, which was modified in 1898 and in 1901, and 

finally altered in a radical sense by the new 

The law of 1861 provided that the Army was 
to be raised partly by conscription and partly by voluntary 
enlistment. Every man became Hable to conscription on 
attaining the age of nineteen, but as the right of purchasing a 

79 



80 Holland of the Dutch 

substitute continued in force until 1898 all persons in easy 
circumstances escaped military service by the payment of a 
fixed sum. 

Besides, everything was done to make the service as light 
as possible. The nominal period of five years was reduced in 
practice to one of a year with the colours, followed by four 
annual periods of six weeks' training each. The annual 
contingent was fixed at the very low total of 11,000 men each 
year. On this basis it was not difiicult to keep up a peace 
effective of 2,000 officers and 26,000 men with the minimum 
of offence to citizens, who frankly detested any miHtary service 
at all. This small army mobilised for war gave the modest 
total of 68,000 men. 

In 1898 the right of pre-emption was abolished, but as 

volunteering for the active army continued to be encouraged 

in every possible way, the burden of conscrip- 

Abolished. ^^^^ ^^^^ rendered general and compulsory 

was hghtened in a considerable degree. The 

reader will understand how every volunteer entering the 

service freed a conscript from his obligations. Moreover, the 

annual contingent still remained at the low figure of 11,000, 

of which 500 were assigned to the Navy. 

In 1901 a more serious attempt was made to bring the Dutch 
Army up to date, but of course serious attempt must be 
interpreted by the standard of Dutch politics, and not of a 
thorough military reorganisation. I mean that the prejudice 
of the people against a truly national army is almost as great 
in Holland as it is in England. 

The annual contingent was, in the first place, raised from 
11,000 to 17,000 men (about one-third of the total number of 
the inscribed population attaining the age of 
Increased.* nineteen each year with the present popula- 
tion). It was anticipated that this measure 
would eventually increase the war strength of the Army 
from 68,000 men to 118,000 men, and as far as the paper 
strength goes this result has been attained. The seven 



The Dutch Army 81 

classes of released men give a total of close on 100,000 

Reservists. 

In the second place, the old Schutterij, or Rifle Volunteers, 

were abolished by the new military law of 1901, and in their 

place was substituted a regular territorial 

A Landwehr. army or landwehr {landweer) of time-expired 

soldiers, whose military service in one form 

or another covered the total period of fifteen years, viz., eight 

years in the regular army and the reserve, and seven years 

in the landwehr. 

The period of active service with the colours, however, for 
infantry was reduced to eight and a half months, but in cases 
where the recruit had not learned his drill this could be in- 
creased to twelve months. The infantryman has also to 
serve for a further term of ten weeks, but this is spread over 
seven years and three and a half months, and divided into 
three periods. At the end of eight years the soldier passes 
into the landwehr, of which he forms a unit for seven years. 
In those seven years he has only to turn out for two trainings, 
each of no more than six days. 

The increased contingent has thus been purchased at the 
heavy price of reducing the period of service to a minimum 
perilous to efficient military training. 

In figures the following are the results of the new organisation. 

In 1910 the Peace Effective of the regular army was 

represented by 2,015 officers and 27,276 men. 

Effective. These figures are not absolutely dependable, 

for the returns vary from month to month. 

Practically speaking, there has been little or no variation in 

the total of the Peace Effective during the last twenty years 

under the old system or the new. 

The reserve of the National Militia (the Regular Dutch 
Army), which would be at once incorporated 

The Reserve, with the Army on mobilisation, mustered 
in 1910 for the seven free classes 110,000 
men, which should provide a total of 100,000 effectives. 

6— (2390) 



82 



Holland of the Dutch 



The following statement shows the composition of the 
andwehr force (1911) — 



Officers. 



1.124 



Men. 



Infantry 


1,008 


54,912 


Garrison Artillery 


96 


6,216 


Engineers 


8 


812 


Pontoon Corps 


4 


406 


Telegraph ,, 


2 


160 


Hospital ,, 


4 


962 


Administration 


2 


114 



I 



63.582 



A new arrangement has been made for accelerating the 
assembly of the landwehr on mobihsation. Formerly the 
uniforms and rifles of the men were kept in depots, and 
mobilisation was hampered by the delay caused in sending 
the men to them, more especially as they are rather scattered. 
But by the new regulation they are to be allowed to keep 
them in their homes, so that immediately on receipt of 
orders they can leave fully equipped and armed, except for 
ammunition, for the rallying point. This certainly saves 
time and appears from every point of view a practical 
arrangement. 

The infantry of the regular army is divided into one Grena- 
dier and eleven line regiments of four battalions each. The 
battalion contains four companies, each 240 

Tnfanfrv 

Regiments. strong on war footing. In peace the strength 
is about two-fifths of the total. 

One regiment, known as " the Regiment of Grenadiers and 
Chasseurs," always garrisons The Hague. It is composed 
of two battalions of Grenadiers and two battalions of 
Chasseurs. 

The cavalry consists of four regiments of Hussars. Each 
regiment contains four field squadrons and two extra 
squadrons, one at the dep6t and one for orderly work. Horses 
are provided for about five and a half squadrons altogether. 



The Dutch Army 83 

sufficient for the immediate purposes of the army on 
mobiUsation, as will be described. 

There is also a corps of Marechaussee or gendarmes, muster- 
ing four divisions of 500 men apiece. The functions of this 
corps are to hasten and facilitate the mobihsation, to provide 
escorts for the baggage train, and to perform various other 
duties which are not clearly defined. It is in every sense of the 
word a corps d' elite, and all the men have served the first part 
at least of army service. 

The artillery consists of horse, mounted, garrison, and 

fortress. The first two were provided in 1905 with 75 m.m. 

Krupp quick-firers, equipped with shields, 

Artillery. and there are twenty-four batteries of 

mounted artillery (that is to say, field) of six 

guns each. Of horse artillery there are only two batteries 

with the same number of guns apiece. The total field artillery 

of twenty-four batteries represent 144 guns. This force is 

divided into four regiments, one for each division. The 

horse artillery is attached to the separate Cavalry 

Division. 

The garrison artillery is divided into four regiments, which 
are quartered at Utrecht, Amsterdam, Gorinchem, and 
Helder respectively in their numerical order. A detachment 
of the 2nd regiment from Amsterdam has its headquarters at 
Naarden. The artillery school is at Zwolle. There is a 
special corps of Pantserfort, that is, fortress, artillery, 
divided into four companies of a total strength of 920 
men. 

The landwehr garrison artillery joins on mobilisation the 
regular troops for the defence of the points assigned. It 
consists of twenty-four companies, each composed of 4 
officers and 259 men, giving a grand total of 96 officers and 
6,216 men. 

The Engineer corps is divided into four Commandemenden 
(or commands). They are Utrecht, Amsterdam, Breda, and 
Arnhem. Attached to each are a large number of magazines 



84 Holland of the Dutch 

formed at places within the radius of each but they need not 
be specified. 

The Dutch Army is organised on the basis of four distinct 
divisions of approximately equal field strength. Each 
division is composed of three regiments of 
Divisions. infantry six batteries of artillery, a squadron 
of cavalry for orderly work, a company of 
cyclists, a company of engineers, a contingent of eight machine 
guns, and other units producing a total of 19,000 men. The 
respective headquarters of these divisions are The Hague, 
Arnhem, Breda, and Amersfoort. The Dutch Army is thus 
expected to furnish a field force of 76,000 men, after providing 
for the defence of the fortified positions by the remainder of 
the regular Army, chiefly artillery and engineers supported by 
the landwehr. There is good reason to think, however, that 
the Arnhem division would be absorbed in the defence and 
not available for the field, at least in the first stages of a war. 
To these numbers must be added the separate cavalry under 
its own general composed of four Hussar regiments of four 
squadrons each and two horse batteries approximately 
3,500 men together. 

Hitherto the small cavalry force has been very much dis- 
persed, and broken up into small garrisons, but arrangements 
are being made to keep the regiments at cen- 

The Cavalry, tral points well within the country. For 

instance, the cavalry regiment quartered at 

Venlo and Roermond will be concentrated at Tilburg, an 

important railway junction, as soon as the new barracks 

now building for them are ready. 

The infantry is armed with a Mannlicher (6*5 m.m.) rifle, 
with a magazine of five cartridges. 

Composition ^^ ^^ ^^ ^^ some interest and possible 

of a Dutch utility to give a statement of the composition 
Division. ^nd strength of a Dutch division after mobilis- 
ation on the existing scale. It will be composed ar 
follows — 



The Dutch Army 



85 







Horses 


, 




Officers. 


Men. 


Officers. 


Men. 


Carts. 


General Staff .. 60 


310 


100 


220 


— 


Three regiments of 










infantry .. ..321 


15.801 


69 


348 


153 


One company of cyclists 3 


152 








One squadron of Hussars 6 


152 


10 


48 


6 


One regiment of Field 










Artillery .. ..37 


993 


69 


1,016 


147 


One company of Field 










Pioneers . . . . 3 


167 


1 


15 


6 


Munition train . . 3 


204 


4 


246 


103 


Artillery Munition train 3 


178 


4 


183 


41 


One company telegraphists 1 


109 


1 


12 


7 


Medical Train . . 4 


152 


2 


126 


52 


Ambulance Corps 22 


308 


7 


107 


27 


Field Hospital .. 2 


29 


1 


9 


2 


Pontoon section . . 2 


108 


3 


54 


12 



467 18.663 



271 



2.484 



556 



The infantry regiments are counted in the above table as 

having five battalions each, for the very first order under the 

mobilisation scheme is the formation of a 

Battalions ^^^ battaUon, and in addition the preliminary 

steps are to be taken at the same time for the 

further formation of a 6th battahon. 

On mobihsation the field artillery is to be increased by the 
formation of a reserve field battery at each head depot, that 
is to say, four batteries altogether. 

The strength of this battery is fixed at 4 officers, 157 men, 

169 horses, and 23 carts. In addition a Howitzer battery 

is to be formed, but it is not clear whether this means one for 

each division or only one for the whole army. 

The following table shows the strength of the cavahy brigade — 

Horses. 
Officers. 

Staff 6 

Hussar Regiments (4) 120 

Cavalry Munition train 
Two batteries Horse Artillery 26 
Artillery Munition train 

152 



Men. 


Officers*. 


Men's. 


Carta. 


39 


10 


33 


2 


2,512 


220 


2,444 


104 


400 




400 


100 


632 


46 


728 


74 


118 




116 


28 


3.701 


276 


3.721 


308 



86 Holland of the Dutch 

It may be mentioned that the following regiments are 

affected to the divisions indicated — 

Grenadier-Chasseur Regiment and 

4th and 10th Regiments, . . . . 1st division. 

7th, 8th and 11th .. .. 2nd 

2nd, 3rd and 6th . . . . 3rd 

1st, 5th and 9th 4th 

The increase in the total strength of the Army by the new 

law of 1912-3 means an addition of at least 25 per cent, to 

each division, but nothing is yet decided as 
l^^^^ to the organisation that will be adopted. Nor 

is it yet known whether part of the scheme 
wiU be an increase of the cavalry and horse artillery, but it 
is reported on good authority that the number of infantry 
regiments will be increased to 24. 

Reference has been made to the volunteering system adopted 
long ago and still maintained for the purpose of lightening the 
burden of conscription for the general public, and a few details 
may be given. In the first place, it may be mentioned that, 
as the cavalry and artillery have to serve, except in very 
exceptional cases, two years with the colours, their ranks 
contain a larger proportion of volunteers than the infantry. 

The volunteer, having to engage himself for a long fixed 
period, is by far the best trained man in the Dutch Army, and 

in the infantry he very soon reaches the 
^Systelm. ^^ grade of non-commissioned officer. Indeed, 

he is the only true professional soldier in the 
country. Unfortunately, the country has his services for a 
total period of no more than six years as against the fifteen 
years' liability of the ordinary conscript, but the State benefits 
through those services being continuous. On completing his 
term the volunteer is free of all military liability whatever, 
and is not amenable to the new landwehr law. 

Any Dutch subject may volunteer for the Army on reaching 
the age of seventeen. He formally enlists for six years. 
He may volunteer as early as fifteen and a half, but then the 
term will be for eight years. 



The Dutch Army 87 

Volunteers may, however, remain in the Army for longer 
periods, provided they continue their education and succeed 
in passing the examinations that are incumbent on them 
at stated intervals as the condition of promotion to the suc- 
cessive grades of ensign, Ueutenant, and captain of the Reserve. 

Although the pay is good, few volunteers continue beyond 
the period of six years, the probable explanation being that the 
educational test is too high for men who left school so young. 

The system of education for the officers themselves is 
excellent. All, with an exception to be noted, have to pass 
through the Royal MHitary Academy at Breda, 
^^cefs.° which prepares for all branches of the Army ; 
but they may commence at the cadets' school 
at Alkmaar. At Breda the limit of age for entrants is seven- 
teen to twenty-one ; at Alkmaar fifteen to eighteen. The 
course at Breda is one of three years, and at Alkmaar of two. 
The condition of admission to the cadets' school is nine years' 
service in the Army, of which five may be passed in the Reserve. 
At Breda also the student must engage for seven years' 
service as officer. These obHgations are compensated for by 
the fact that the fees are very low, and the education excel- 
lent. It is reckoned that the cost at Alkmaar is less than 
£24, and at Breda not more than £40 a year. 

There is a third military educational establishment at 

Kampen, but this is only for infantry and the non-combatant 

branches, and is of a different character to 

at Kampen. ^^^ others, being for the Army itself. To 
this school non-commissioned officers are sent 
who wish to quahfy for a commission. The term of instruc- 
tion depends on the amount of education possessed by the 
aspirant, but there are many regimental schools in which 
preliminary and general instruction is given for two years. 
The aspirant must, however, pass out within two years of 
commencing the final course. 

The headquarters of the Engineers are at Utrecht, while 
those of the artillery, the infantry, and the cavalry are now 



88 Holland of the Dutch 

concentrated at The Hague. Utrecht, in addition to being 
the headquarters of the corps of military engineers, is also the 
seat of the college in which the civil engineers of the State 
aspiring for employment in the Wat erst aat Department are 
trained. At Amersfoort there is a riding school, and at 
Oldebrook, near Zwolle, a polygon for artillery practice and 
manoeuvres. 

The fundamental idea of Dutch defence is the opening of the 

dykes from Utrecht and Amsterdam, and the holding of what 

is called the water-line along which have 

Water-Line. ^^^^ constructed a good many forts and 

batteries. The passage down the Rhine is 

blocked by a powerful fort at Westervoort, supplemented 

by batteries at the Hoofddam at Pannerden, outside 

Arnhem. 

The position thus formed, which is known as Holland 
Fortress, is one of very considerable strength, and so long 
as the Helder forts closed the back entrance by the Zuyder 
Zee it would take the most powerful enemy a long time to 
surmount this obstacle. 

But, unfortunately, this defence applies to only a very 
small portion of the country. It leaves the southern and 
eastern provinces entirely open to invasion. For this reason 
the Dutch plan of defence includes the operations of a field 
army with its base at Breda or possibly Tilburg. 

On the assumption that the active army produces on mobil- 
isation 120,000 men, and the landwehr 50,000 more, it is 
considered possible to place a force of at least 
^^my.^^ 76,000 men in the field, composed exclusively 
of regulars. The question of the co-operation 
of the landwehr in field operations is left over for the events 
themselves to decide. 

The four cavalry regiments, and the two batteries of horse 
artniery would, as already stated, be combined as a mounted 
contingent under the command of the Inspector of Cavalry, 
who would be left to his own discretion to turn his small 




< 

Q 
Q 
< 

< 
< 

o 

w 

K 
H 



The Dutch Army 89 

corps to the best account. Useless by itself, it might still 
form a useful addition to an allied army, and the Dutch 
cavalry man makes a good impression on the observer. 
Indeed, the whole army would form a very valuable accession 
of strength to any other force that the Dutch might invite to 
come to their assistance. 

In addition to the forts on the Water-Line there are those 

of the Helder — the northern Gibraltar — and at the entrance 

of the Amsterdam and Rotterdam Canals, 

^rts!^ besides minor forts on the Scheldt, HoUandsch 

Diep, like Volkerak and Elewoutsdyk. Quite 

recently there was a proposal to expend a large amount on the 

fortification of Flushing, and the magnitude of the sum to be 

spent, quite as much as the local considerations, drew marked 

attention to the proposal in the countries most likely to be 

affected by it. The project has not been abandoned ; but 

it is receiving fuller consideration, and the outcome will 

probably be its modification. 

The real defensive system of Holland reposes on her water 
defences, and these are believed to be in thorough working 
order, and susceptible of being made ready for invasion at a 
few hours' notice. But over and beyond maintaining her 
defensive position, Holland possesses an army which could 
play a great part in conjunction with friendly forces such as 
England and Belgium might naturally be assumed as ready 
to willingly supply. 

A new proposal for further strengthening the Dutch Army 
was voted in 1912, and will receive its full sanction in the 
form of a law during the present year (1913). 
10 12. ^y ^^ ^^^ annual contingent is raised from 

17,000 men to 23,000, and it is expected that 
in this way Holland will be able to put a mobile army in the 
field of at least 100,000 men, besides providing more ade- 
quately than in the plan of 1901 for the defence of all her 
fortified positions. 

It will take some time to work out the details of this scheme, 



90 



Holland of the Dutch 



and a year or two must elapse before it brings any material 
addition to the strength of the Dutch Army, but it shows 
the spreading of the opinion that before very long all nations 
will have to establish their position as independent States 
by being strong and well prepared to resist and defeat 
wanton attack. 



CHAPTER X 

THE DUTCH NAVY 

The Dutch Navy, although now in the second rank, has a 
record of glorious achievement not inferior to any in the 

world. It may be said to date from the time 
pit°^^ of the Gueux de la mer (beggars of the sea), 

who were the true conquerors of the Spaniards. 
But for them, it may be doubted whether the superior 
resources and numbers at the disposal of Madrid would not 
have overborne the heroic Netherlanders. They gave an 
early object lesson, perhaps the first in modern times, of the 
value of sea-power. 

To the " beggars " succeeded the bold mariners and adven- 
turers who founded on the ruins of Portuguese dominion a 
colonial empire that extended from the Cape to China and 
Japan. Van Riebeck founded Cape Town ; Hartighs, 
Nuyts, and Tasman visited the coasts of AustraHa, and gave 
it the name of New Holland ; Schouten, who rounded South 
America, attached the name of his natal town to Cape Horn ; 
Behring proved that Asia and America were not joined by 
land ; and, last but not least, the heroic Barendts disappeared 
in the Arctic mists with his eyes fixed on the North-East 
Passage. But whether the scene lay on and beyond the 
Tropic of Cancer or within the Polar Circle, the courage, 
constancy, and persistency of Dutch navigators figured in the 
van among the illuminators of the world's dark places. 

And if we turn from peaceful explorers and pioneers of 
trade to the fighting leaders, the record reads not less bril- 

Hantly. De Ruyter and the two Van Tromps 
^e Ruyter?" ^^^ names that sound in Dutch ears hke those 

of Blake and Nelson to Enghshmen. It 
was the elder Van Tromp who captured Sheerness and hoisted 

91 



92 HoUand of the Dutch 

a broom at his mainmast to signify that he had swept the 
Channel. De Ruyter also shared his glory and took a promi- 
nent part in the long-drawn out struggle with Blake, glorious 
to both sides and conclusive for neither. His career ended in 
the Mediterranean before an opponent worthy of his steel, 
the great French naval leader Duquesne, from whom 
Louis XIV withheld the rank of admiral because he was a 
Protestant. 

The two Van Tromps, Martin and Cornehus, were his equals 
in capacity and achievement. Martin, ten years his senior, 
was in a sense his instructor. He fought the battles of the 
Dunes, of Portland, Nieuport, and Dunkirk, and if he had not 
been killed in a small affair at Catwik, in 1653, he might have 
become still more famous. Both he and Ruyter rose from 
the ranks, each learning their profession as simple sailors. 
His son, Cornehus, helped by his father's achievements, 
attained the rank of captain at twenty-one, and before he 
was thirty-six found himself head of the Dutch Navy. When 
displaced in that post by Ruyter, who was twenty years his 
senior, he retired in pique, and then on appointment as his 
second in command during the war with Charles H, allowed his 
jealousy to induce him to neglect to support his chief at a 
critical moment. This led to his retirement in disgrace, and 
during these years he used to amuse himself with fighting his 
battles over again with model ships on the pond in the garden 
of his villa. William HI, at the most critical moment, in 
1691, of his long struggle with France, reappointed him to the 
command in chief of his fleet, and the old sailor eagerly 
answered the call, believing that fresh laurels awaited him. 
But fate intervened. Before his fleet could sail to meet the 
enemy the last of the Van Tromps was dead. 

Although the Dutch fleet of the eighteenth century failed 
to carry on the record of brilliant successes that had marked 
its course in the seventeenth, it continued to rank among the 
first naval forces in the world, and it produced sailors of the 
highest skill and valour. Among them was Admiral de 



The Dutch Navy 93 

Winter, who, after a heroic struggle against superior odds, 
was compelled to strike his flag to Admiral Duncan at Camper- 
down in the last year of the eighteenth century. When peace 
was restored after Waterloo, the Netherlands Government 
made but a feeble effort to restore its fleet, and indeed the 
nucleus of it was provided by the voluntary restoration by 
England of several of the old vessels that had fallen into her 
hands. 

But the possession of Java imposed on the Hague author- 
ities the necessity of having some ships of war, and as soon 

as these had been got together they took an 
Co-operation, honourable part in co-operation with Lord 

Exmouth's expedition, in the bombardment 
of Algiers in 1817. The Dutch Admiral, Van Capellen, was 
thanked by the British Parhament for his services, and 
received the Order of the Bath and a sword of honour. 

Some years after this event an incident occurred which 
showed that the spirit of Dutch sailors stood as high as ever, 
and it deserves mention here because it is treasured by the 
people of Holland as one of their heroic episodes. It was 
during the Belgian Revolution when General Chasse held 
possession of the Citadel of Antwerp, and a Dutch squadron 
held the Scheldt and secured his communications with Holland. 
In February, 1831, during a heavy gale a Dutch gunboat went 
adrift and grounded near the river bank. The Belgians 

determined to secure what seemed an easy 
Hero. prize, and boarded the boat. The young 

commander, Lieut. Van Speyck, had only 
thirty-one men under him, there were several hundred Bel- 
gians, and resistance was really out of the question ; but he 
refused to haul down his flag. He opened the door of the 
magazine, and as the assailants rushed to seize him he fired 
his pistol into the powder and the ship was blown to pieces 
with nearly every one on board. The incident made a tre- 
mendous sensation throughout Europe. Van Speyck was 
proclaimed the national hero, a fine monument was erected 



94 Holland of the Dutch 

to him in Amsterdam, and more than one Dutch artist has 
depicted the scene in the Uttle gunboat on the Scheldt. 

The old spirit of " the beggars of the sea '* survives, and 
everyone who has met Dutch naval officers of the present day 
has been favourably impressed by their good 
Materfal. quahties and their quiet conscientiousness, 
so much so that more than one EngHsh admi- 
ral — the late Sir Harry Keppel, himself, in descent as well as 
spirit, " a sea beggar " to the core, may be named — has 
declared Dutch naval men only need the ships to show that 
they are just as good as ever they were. And if this is true 
of the officers, it is not less true of the men, who are just the 
right stamp for man-o'-warsmen. The Dreadnoughts are 
absent but the men to man them are there, and now that the 
Government at The Hague are becoming aUve to the needs of 
the hour it may not be very long before the ships are 
forthcoming. 

Now that the Navy is merged with the Army in one Depart- 
ment of National Defence, organic changes are not improbable, 
but they will probably be spread over a good many years. 
The existing staff and personnel are sufficiently strong in num- 
bers to provide for the increased fleet likely to come into being 
between the present year and 1916. Moreover, the increased 
annual contingent will allow of at least 1 ,000 men being passed 
into the Navy instead of only 500, as has been hitherto the 
case. But it is on the existing cadres that the new force will 
have to be grafted, and the following figures are based on the 
official returns for the year 1912. 

The staff and personnel of the Dutch Navy was then com- 
posed as follows. There are three vice-admirals — the highest 
, . naval rank — on the active Ust, and four rear- 
^Staf? *"^ admirals. Of capitaines d la mer, the equi- 
valent of our post captains, there are 28 ; 
37 commanders, 143 captain-Ueutenants, 350 Heutenants 
divided into two classes or lieutenants and ensigns, and 
96 cadets or adeborsten, complete the combatant side of the 



'i: 




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P 

W 
H 



< 

w 

I— ( 

w 

w 
u 

I— I 

a, 



i 



4 



The Dutch Navy 95 

Navy. The total reaches 701 ; but a project of increasing 
the number of Heutenants by about 100 will probably come 
into effect immediately. 

The mechanical side is also organised on similar hues. The 
mechanicians are employed on ships in commission, and the 
engineers at the arsenals and shipyards, their duties relating 
to the ships when laid up or at least stationary. Taking 
the mechanicians first, there are 23 officers divided into 
two grades, and 212 mechanicians divided into four 
classes. 

The engineers consist of a director of naval construction, 
4 chief engineers, 10 engineers (divided into two grades), 
and 2 cadets. 

The Commissariat Department is composed of one chief 
inspector, 2 inspectors, 72 commissaries, and 13 assistants. 
The medical officers number 1 inspector, 5 directors, and 74 
health officers. 

The personnel is composed of 7,000 bluejackets. 

The Dutch Navy, hke our own, has a corps of Marines. 
According to the latest returns, it numbered 50 officers and 
2,600 men. The corps of officers was divided as follows : 
1 colonel, 3 commandants, 1 1 captains, and 35 heutenants. 

The total personnel of the Dutch Navy, therefore, numbers 
nearly 11,000 men all told. 

All commissioned officers have to pass through the naval 
school at Willemsvord at the Helder. The training is good, 
and includes much practical work in sailing 
School. ships on the Zuyder Zee. 

A fresh naval programme was adopted in 
1909, and in the last three years a certain number of new ships 
have been built taking the places of old and indeed out-of-date 
units. But the Dutch have shown great moderation in their 
designs and have not attempted to enter into competition 
with other nations in respect of battleships and battle cruisers. 
Their largest battleship afloat is one of only 7,600 tons. The 
battleships are divided into three of 3,520 tons, four of 5,000 



96 Holland of the Dutch 

tons, one of 5,300 tons, one of 6,500 tons, and one of 7,600 
tons, or ten altogether. These vessels are armed in their 
main battery with 1 1 inch guns. Six new cruisers were added 
during the same period, three being of 3,900 tons and three of 
3,950 tons. 

The subsidiary part of the Navy is made up of 1 river moni- 
tor, stationed at Nijmegen, 50 torpedo boats, 33 gunboats, and 
2 submarines. In 1912 8 destroyers and 4 new torpedo boats 
were added. One grave defect in the Dutch system is that 
there is no gun foundry in Holland. For the Navy, as for 
the Army, the artillery has to be bought abroad, and there 
is not uniformity of system, for some ships are armed with 
Krupps and others with Armstrongs. 

As to the new programme, nothing can be said of the details 
because they come under the head of official secrets. They 

are so secret that they are not Hkely to have 
Programme. ^^Y tangible existence before next winter, 

when the States-General may be called upon 
to pass the necessary Bill, but there is an idea prevalent that 
Holland will build some larger ships than she has ever done 
in the past. It has been suggested that a battleship on 
" Dreadnought " lines of about 17,000 tons would meet the 
case ; but if this would be a good unit for the North Sea it 
is not so clear that it would be the best for the Indian Ocean, 
and half of Dutch anxieties centre in Java since the rise of 
Japan and the awakening of the Far East. 

Public opinion has been rather stirred in Holland by a 
rumour that the Government contemplated beginning the 

strengthening of the Dutch fleet by purchas- 

^ J^^ ing a discarded "Dreadnought" at present 

Questioi? ill the service of a foreign Power, and this 

commotion was not allayed when a further 
report was circulated to the effect that the selling Power would 
be Germany. It is quite true that Holland possesses no 
yard capable of turning out a " Dreadnought " of even 
17,000 tons, but why not order a new one from an EngUsh 



The Dutch Navy 97 

shipyard ? That question has been prominently asked in 
Holland. With the view of appeasing the pubUc a statement 
was made that this project only referred to the Colonial 
Navy, but the colonials are making a still louder protest, 
declaring that nothing but the most up-to-date vessels will 
satisfy their needs and expectations. 

In regard to naval power, it is well to remember that there 
is a separate naval estabUshment for the Indies, and that the 
cruiser permanently stationed at Batavia forms part of the 
Indian marine. The bulk of the flotilla was composed of 
paddle-wheel gunboats especially suitable for operations in the 
rivers and creeks of the archipelago. But since 1909 the 
Indian squadron has been strengthened by the addition of 
2 torpedo-destroyers, 9 torpedo boats, 1 mine-laying boat, 
and 10 special service boats. The last named serve the 
purpose of the old gunboats, but are faster and more power- 
fully armed. The latest proposal is to keep a battleship and 
two cruisers permanently on the station, and it is considered 
that the colonial budget can easily bear an annual naval vote 
of 2J miUions sterUng. 

It seems safe to assume, therefore, that the new naval 

measures of the Dutch will include an Eastern as well as a 

Western programme, and that the resources 

Programmes. °^ *^^ great Colony as well as of the Mother 
Country wiU be drawn upon for the purpose. 
But it is clear that no half measures will satisfy the people 
at Batavia. 

In Europe the main purpose of the fleet will be to co-operate 
in the defence of the Helder, and to prevent a hostile squadron 
getting into the Zuyder Zee, and turning the Water-Une 
defence into a trap by an attack from the rear. A second 
idea is to hold in hand a sufficient movable naval force to 
assume the offensive against any invader of Zeeland. Perhaps 
the third idea is the predominant one. It is felt that Holland 
ought to have for her own dignity a sufficient naval force 
to combine with her friends in the defence of her national 

7— (3390) 



98 Holland of the Dutch 

rights, and this is what she is now likely to make a serious 
effort to furnish. 

But in the reaHsation of such a programme, the Dutch 

Government is confronted by many difficulties besides the 

provision of the necessary funds. She has no 

A Dilemma, shipyards for battleships. From whom shall 
she order the ships ? She has no foundries, 
where shall she obtain their cannon ? For uniformity's 
sake they ought to come from the same source, but that 
means giving the whole of the order to either England or 
Germany, and Dutch opinion generally hesitates a long time 
before committing itself so positively. The only conclusion 
that seems safe is that there must be a good deal of delay before 
the final move is made. 

In Asia the same objections do not apply. There the only 
important matter to be arranged is the provision of the funds. 
Holland herself can build the smaller units in the Indian 
squadron, and the acquisition of a cruiser or two in the open 
market would not attract much notice wherever the business 
was done. The defence of the Dutch colonial possessions, 
with their immense wealth, has become a question of the day, 
and as the natives and half-breeds already participate in the 
task, the Home Government has not the anxiety of providing 
an increased European contingent for the purpose. In the 
Dutch East Indies the problem of Asiatic crews for warships 
has been fairly faced, and the nucleus at least of what may 
become an efficient organisation is already in existence. 



CHAPTER XI 

HOLLAND'S COLONL\L EMPIRE 

Three centuries ago Holland was the rival of England in the 
task of building up a Colonial Empire, and for a short time 
she even possessed a superior place in inter- 
Colonial ^Power riational competition to this country. During 
the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries 
she stripped Portugal and Spain of the greater part of their 
Asiatic possessions ; she planted herself in South Africa and 
Ceylon ; she secured the monopoly of trade with Japan, 
and she even gave Australia its first name as New Holland. 
In America her success was almost as striking as it had 
been in Africa and Asia, if it proved less permanent. For 
a small country with a restricted population she accomphshed 
wonders in the acquisition of colonies, but her resources in 
men were not sufficient for the retention of so many prizes 
along the great world routes that necessarily excited the 
cupidity of her rivals, and the time at last came when some 
of them were lost. 

This, no doubt, was due to the dechne in Holland's maritime 
power, for after the close of the eighteenth centiu-y she sank 
to the second or third rank among naval States ; but here 
again the same cause is perceptible — a deficiency of popula- 
tion. The da}^ of Little States had gone by never to return, 
so far at least as the appropriation of Colonies was concerned. 

It may be recalled that the Dutch lost their colonies indi- 
rectly as the consequence of their inabihty to defend their 
country against the French at the end of the eighteenth 
century, for England being at war with France natiu-ally 
regarded Holland as an antagonist when she succumbed to 
French influences. England, thereupon, proceeded to make 
sure of her fleet, and gradually occupied all her colonies. This 

99 



100 Holland of the Dutch 

process began with Ceylon in 1795 and ended with Java 
in 1810. 

When peace was proclaimed at Vienna there was a re- 
shuffling of the cards, and different principles were applied 
in the adjustment of a balance between the 
Restored. ^^^ countries. With regard to Ceylon, the 
Dutch had ceded their stations in that island 
by a formal treaty signed at Colombo. This was left undis- 
turbed. With regard to the Cape of Good Hope, England 
paid an indemnity of two millions for its retention. On the 
other hand, Java, Malacca, Surinam, and Cura^oa were 
restored to Holland, and these constitute the present Dutch 
Colonial Empire with the exception that Sumatra was 
subsequently exchanged by formal treaty in 1828 for Malacca. 

But although Holland is no longer the first of Colonial 
Powers, as she was in the days of Van Tromp and De Ruyter, 
she is still the possessor of a splendid Colonial dominion. 
Much of the national wealth and prosperity is derived from 
it, and even if we regard the saying that " without Java 
Holland would be dead " as a great exaggeration, still the 
possession of the Dutch Indies does undoubtedly enhance her 
prosperity, and add to her dignity in the eyes of the world. 
Like us, Holland breathes that larger atmosphere created 
by the possession of remote territories and Imperial 
responsibilities. 

The capital of the Dutch Indies is Batavia, the principal 

town of the island of Java, and a Governor-General directs 

from its Government House, or from the 

Indies.*^ country residence at Buitenzorg, the affairs 

of the most marvellous conglomeration of 

islands on the surface of the globe. 

Their computed area is 738,000 square miles, and the main 
islands with their dependent isles and islets may be counted 
by hundreds. They produce all the fruits and flowers, the 
grains and berries, the essences and oils of the Tropics. Rich 
in precious metals and minerals, no limit can be placed to 



Holland's Colonial Empire 101 

their productiveness especially when we bear in mind that 
many of them are really virgin soil, and that only in Java and 
Sumatra can up-to-date methods be said to have been em- 
ployed, and even there it has been only over a limited area. 
The Dutch Colonies in the East are consequently among the 
richest, if not the very richest, in the world. If evidence of 
this were needed it would be found in the fact that one hundred 
thousand Netherlanders reside in the Sunda Isles, which is a 
larger white population than the English form in India, 
excluding the garrison. 

The population of the Dutch Indies by the last census 
(1st Jan., 1910) was given as 37,815,400, and of this total 
30,098,000 lived in Java and Madura, the adjacent island 
always linked with it in the administration. 

The Colonial revenue was, according to the Budget for the 

year 1911, ^f 17,884,147, and the expenditure £19,918,063, 

but as the deficit was due to capital outlay 

Reveniw. ^^ railways and other remunerative public 

works, it has no sinister significance. The 

reader wiU not fail to note that the Budget of the Colony is 

larger than that of the Mother Country. The total exports 

from the Indies were valued at £56,528,292, and the imports 

at £22,451,479. 

The bulk of the white population is engaged in planting 

or trade. The number of officials is not very great, being 

composed of the white staff of the army, and 

^^ aJJ^v"'^^ of the Civil Service. The Army mustered 
in 1911 a total of 33,495 men, of whom 1,339 
were European officers and 10,656 European privates and 
non-coms. The native troops accordingly numbered 21,500. 
The force is organised in battalions of four companies, three 
being native and one European as a rule, but in picked bat- 
talions the proportion is reversed, three being European 
and one native. 

Formerly two-thirds of the white force were of other nation- 
alities than Dutch, principally Belgian and German, but of 



102 Holland of the Dutch 

late years more Dutchmen go to the East, tempted principally 
by the good pension which can be earned after twelve years' 
service. It is estimated that the larger half of the European 
army is now Dutch, while the German element has increased 
at the same time as the Belgian has declined. 

The staff of the native army as shown numbers close on 
1,400 European officers, but an increasing number of half- 
castes are being admitted every year, and some persons predict 
that the time is approaching when the Dutch Indian Army 
will be mainly composed of Cloerlings. The Dutch Govern- 
ment is, therefore, nearer finding a solution of the Eurasian 
problem than we are in India. It is true that it is a more 
urgent problem with them than with us, for the number of 
half-castes is far greater in proportion to the white population 
in Java than in India. 

The improvement in the social position of the natives of 

Java, or Javantsijs, in the last twenty-five years has also 

greatly simplified the question. Formerly 

ProWem!*" *^^ natives had no rights as against Europeans, 

and their social inferiority was so marked that 

if a Javanese 'of position^met a Dutchman of even the lowest 

rank on the high roads he had to dismount if riding and salute 

him as a superior. This practice has been either abandoned 

or greatly modified, and is only enforced in the case of the 

higher officials. 

But the most important change of all has been in the rela- 
tions of the sexes. Formerly every Dutchman kept a Njai, 
half housekeeper and half mistress, and a legal marriage was 
never thought of. The children of their union were not merely 
bastards, but they were called so in popular parlance. In 
many cases the father refrained from marrying elsewhere, thus 
treating his union with the Njai as of a permanent nature, 
and did his best for his children even to the extent of sending 
them to Holland to be educated, but in those days he never 
thought of marrying his Njai, and thus making his children 
legitimate. Times have so changed that this step is becoming 



Holland's Colonial Empire 103 

quite common, and the increased facilities for education in 
Java will no doubt contribute towards making it the general 
practice. 

This reform movement was largely due to the sensation 
produced in Holland by the revelations made in Max Havelaar, 

the great work by the popular author E. 
Havelai." Douwes Dekker, wio from his ow^n experience 

in the Indies described the abuses that existed 
there. The natives, and more especially the Javanese and 
BaHnese, are now ahve to the advantages of being made " the 
legal wife," and as the knowledge of Dutch is spreading fast 
among the people it is inevitable that this sentiment must be- 
come the permanent conviction among the Malay ladies. The 
legal marriage with a native is in every respect as binding as 
with an European, and the children have absolutely the same 
rights of inheritance in the family not merely in the Indies but 
at home. Already many of the offspring of these unions hold 
commissions in the Dutch army and marine, but as a matter 
of fact they either select themselves or are selected for service 
in the Indies. 

In this way an entirely new race or community is springing 
into existence in south-east Asia, and an Eurasian experiment 

on a large scale is in process of evolution in 
A New Race, the Dutch Indies. No one can predict how 

it will turn out, but at least it deserves study 
and watching. 

Opinions in Holland differ as to the mental capacity and 
character of the half-castes. Perhaps on the whole the 

verdict is unfavourable (many Dutchmen 
the Half-Castes. ^^-^^^S them both stupid and untruthful), 

but a more correct conclusion is likely to be 
arrived at on the spot than in the Mother Country where 
racial feeling runs high. The Eurasian is the product of the 
Tropics ; it is in the Indies that he has to exist and to establish 
his right to live. Those to be seen in Holland, chiefly at The 
Hague and Amsterdam, give an appearance of delicacy which 



104 Holland of the Dutch 

may not be justified by the facts, and suggest the idea that 
they are only exotics. The Dutch Colonials themselves make 
a distinction between the children of different races, and, 
according to them, those of Amboynese mothers show the least 
deterioration and give the most promise. Probably the most 
important factor in the problem will be the improved educa- 
tion of the mothers, and this must take a generation or two 
before a marked advancement can be discerned. 

Although the whole of the Dutch Indies lie in the Tropics, 
the greater part of them are quite suitable for European 
residents, and it is only on the coast that malaria and enteric 
fever are at all common. Baron Van der Capellen proved 
during his government that fever could be combated by ordi- 
nary sanitary precautions. Java, in particular, at five miles' 
distance from the sea is a white man's land. The same may 
be said of Sumatra, while among the smaller islands Banca 
and Billiton are exceptionally healthy. 

The Dutch connection with Java goes back over three 
centuries. After Goa, Batavia is the oldest European pos- 
session in Asia still left in the hands of its 
Batavia. original founders, and the name perpetuates 
the fame of the Batavian tribes from which 
the Dutch descend. Batavia is the seat of government and 
the residence of the Governor-General, who is assisted by a 
Supreme Council of four members. The greater part of the 
year, however, is spent at Buitenzorg, 35 miles south of Bata- 
via, where there is a charming residence surrounded by the 
most beautiful gardens and tropical plantations. Batavia 
possesses one of the finest harbours in the East, and this is 
the more remarkable because the land is constantly gaining 
at the expense of the sea, and the port first used by the Dutch 
navigators is now terra firma, but the roadstead is almost 
beyond comparison the best in Asia. Sourabaya, east of 
Batavia on the north coast of Java, is regarded as a superior 
port to it, and Telok and Bencoolen, both in Sumatra, are 
also important trading places. In the year 1910 the trade 



Holland's Colonial Empire 105 

between the Dutch Indies and Holland amounted to 
493,900,000 florins of exports from the former, and 113,800,000 
florins of imports. 

Sumatra belonged to England until 1829, when it was 
exchanged with the Dutch for their possessions in Malacca 

on what is now called the Malay Peninsula. 
Sumatra. One of the consequences of this transfer was 

that the Dutch became embroiled with the 
independent State of Atchin, which forms the northern extre- 
mity of the island. For over seventy years a state of almost 
continuous war ensued, and numerous expeditions were fitted 
out to bring the turbulent Atchinese into a state of subjection. 
This has now been accomplished, and although there may be 
troubles of a minor degree we are not likely to hear of another 
war in Atchin like those waged there so frequently during half 
a century. This and the war in Lombok in 1894-6 were 
the two rudest trials of strength to which the Dutch have 
been subjected of late years. The military results of these 
campaigns tended to consolidate their position, and so far 
as can be foreseen Holland has no internal danger to face in 
her East Indian possessions. 

The Dutch system of administration is carried out on the 
principle of residents who advise and control the native chiefs. 

In order to harmonise the old system and the 
Residents. ^^^ *^^ Sultans and Tuans, while left in 

possession of their old titles, are given the 
new style of Regent of a special district, or Residency. They 
are responsible to the Government through its Resident for 
the maintenance of good order, and also for ensuring that the 
produce of the province does not decline. It is the main 
object of the authorities to keep up the output at its present 
high figure, and this is not easy seeing that the Javanese 
themselves are exceedingly indolent and contented with little. 
The Dutch system is that of indirect control as practised by 
us in the majority of the feudal States of India. The Resident 
gives good advice and is the intermediary between the 



106 Holland of the Dutch 

Government and the native princes. At the same time his 
advice has to be followed, and if it is not followed the Regent 
will in extreme cases of disobedience be removed. 

In Java alone there are twenty-two Residencies, and these 
are subdivided into 104 districts, over each of which a sub- 
Resident or Controller is placed. In the other islands the 
system is less elaborate, there being only twelve Residents 
altogether, but Sumatra, Borneo and the Celebes, have each 
a separate government. The authority of the Governor- 
General and his Council of four is supreme over the whole 
archipelago. 

Dutch rule is exceedingly light and indulgent. The native 
rulers are left to follow their own devices, and find salvation 
in the traditional manner, always provided 
Indulgent Rule. ^^^ taxes and produce reach the anticipated 
totals. Fortunately for themselves, Dutch 
officials are not yet harassed by the activity and criticism of 
aboriginal Protection societies at home preaching an ideal 
state of perfection. Some foreign critics have censured the 
Dutch for leaving the Courts of Jojocarta and Suracarta 
undisturbed in their barbaric splendour, but the Dutch are 
impervious to such outside criticism and attribute it to 
motives of envy and jealousy. They have dealt lightly with 
national customs, and they have been wise to do so. No 
one has ever ventured to say that the Javanese native com- 
munity is not one of the happiest and lightest-hearted in the 
world, and perhaps that is the best testimonial to Dutch rule. 

The Dutch have done a great deal to improve internal 

communications in Java. A trunk railway runs from Batavia 

to the eastern end of the island. Another 

nSlways. ^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^ P^^^ ^^ Samarang joins it at 
Suracarta. Light railways are being intro- 
duced. But the bulk of the internal transport is carried along 
the main roads, and an excellent system of post stages has 
been introduced. At every few miles a police station and 
forwarding depot has been established and latterly these have 



Holland^s Colonial Empire 107 

been connected by telegraph and telephone. Horses or hand 
litters can be ordered in advance and thus travelling at a rapid 
rate by short stages is practicable and comfortable. 

The police in Java are exclusively native. They wear a 

sort of uniform and discharge in the main the duties of a 

constabulary. As a rule, three or four men 

Police *^^ are to be found at each station. The inspectors 

are European, but they control large areas, and, 

like everything else in Java, the system works as well as it does 

simply because the people are so easily led and so easily satisfied. 

Government by delegation to the native powers is an 
appropriate description of Dutch rule in the Eastern Archi- 
pelago. In Java, which is strongly held, the supervision is 
close ; in Sumatra, which is also fully under control, it is 
adequate ; but in the minor islands it is relaxed. Where 
other colonising Powers boast of introducing what is known 
as civilisation, Holland has studied to leave native life and 
customs undisturbed. Hers is a peaceful rule, and it is very 
suitable for the unwarUke Javanese. 

Like the English in India, the Dutch have never favoured 
any religious propaganda, and the Malays who constitute 
the bulk of the population, are Mohammedans 
anism. " almost to a man — the exceptions being found 
on the islands of Bali and Lombok. The 
only races which are non- Mussulman are the Battaks of 
Sumatra, the Dyaks of Borneo, and the Papuans of New 
Guinea. The almost universal adoption of Mohammedanism 
is all the more remarkable since its introduction dates no 
further back than the middle of the fifteenth century, but the 
Arab navigators traded with the Archipelago from the ninth 
century. There are about half a million Chinese residents in 
Dutch India, and their labour is essential for the proper 
development of the plantations. As the cultivation of rubber 
extends, their co-operation will become more and more 
essential as the Malays seem incapable of sustained physical 
effort. 



108 Holland of the Dutch 

Quite recently the Chinese settlers have been giving trouble, 
and the authorities at Batavia are rather anxious as to the 
outlook. The Chinese, encouraged by the formation of their 
Republic, and perhaps a little inflated by Japanese success, 
have grown rather bumptious. They are subject to special 
regulations, not only as to admission but also as to residence, 
and some of the Dutch members of the Java Legislative 
Council are beginning to ask, in view of the evolution of Chinese 
opinion, whether this way of treating the yellow race is just 
or can be maintained. 

The Dutch possessions in South America and the West 
Indies are of small account in comparison with those in Asia. 
The province of Dutch Guiana, or Surinam, on 
Guyana ^^^ South American mainland, has a popula- 
tion of less than 100,000 inhabitants (85,098 
by census of 1910, including Indians in the backwoods), and 
its trade is represented by £695,454 of exports and £618,725 
of imports. Dutch Guiana serves as a buffer state between 
British and French Guiana and has a vaguely defined frontier 
in the interior with Brazil. The probability of this region 
proving highly auriferous is increasing and already there is 
a considerable export of gold from Surinam to Holland. 

In the West Indies the island of Cura9oa is alone of import- 
ance. It has a population of under 33,000, and a trade repre- 
sented by £77,115 of exports and £263,525 
Cura^oa. of imports. The five other isles contain 
together 125,000 people, and show a trade 
of £143,074 of exports and of £296,330 of imports. 

The following tabular statement shows the colonies still 

belonging to Holland and may be useful for reference — 

Possessions in Asia known as the Dutch Indies 
The Sunda Islands (the main or Greater Group), including Java, 
Sumatra, the Celebes, the greater part of Borneo, the western 
half of New Guinea, and the western half of Timor. 
The lesser Sunda Group, extending from the Eastern extremity of 
Java to New Guinea, includes Bali, Lombok, Sumbawa, Sandal- 
wood Island, Flores, Solor, and Alor. 
The Moluccas. 




w 

H 
< 
H 
(/) 

W 
H 

in 
O 
O 

o 



Holland's Colonial Empire 109 

American Possessions 

In South America. Dutch Guiana or Surinam (capital Paramaribo). 

In the West Indies. The island of Curagoa and five smaller islands 
of the Antilles or Caribbee group. The latter are Bonaire, Aruba, 
St. Eustache, Saba, and St. Martin. The last named is held in 
division with France. 

Although Holland has been so long a colonising Power it 
has never possessed a school for giving instruction in the 
scientific treatment of colonial problems, including the study 
of tropical diseases. At Delft and Leyden there are special 
schools for teaching Indian languages, and they fulfil a useful 
purpose in their way. But they are conducted on old- 
fashioned lines, and do not come up to the requirements of 
the new world schools. 

Nor has any attempt been made to popularise Colonial 
life in Holland itself. The only institution identified with 
the East Indies was the Colonial Museum 
1nst?tSi*^ founded at Haarlem in 1777. But the 
increasing rivalry and jealousy among the 
nations in respect to colonial possessions have roused Dutch 
statesmen to the need of reviving the interest of their country- 
men in their great and extraordinarily attractive colonies. 
With this end in view a Colonial Institute on a scale appro- 
priate to the importance of the subject is to be founded at 
Amsterdam, and an appeal was recently made to the Dutch 
public to subscribe the necessary funds. The response cer- 
tainly dispels the theory that the Dutch are apathetic in their 
views on colonial questions. 

The city of Amsterdam has given the land for the building 
free, and made a grant of 630,000 florins in addition. But 
far more significant is the fact that the public subscriptions 
have brought in 2,730,000 florins, or over a quarter of a 
million sterling. Of the total sum, 2,940,000 florins are to be 
expended on the buildings, and the balance of 420,000 florins 
is to serve as an endowment. Finally, the Haarlem Colonial 
Museum will be transferred to the new Institute at Amsterdam 
and incorporated with it. 



CHAPTER XII 

REVENUE, FINANCE, AND DEBT 

Every year a statement as to the financial position of the 
country, or rather of the Government, is laid before the 

States-General, and latterly it has been based 
Statement. ^^ ^^^ admission of a deficit. This has been 

due first to increased votes for defence pur- 
poses, and, secondly, to a certain inelasticity in national 
finance attributable to the ineradicable objection of the people 
to new taxes. For the last five years the Finance Minister 
has got over some part of his difficulties by simply levying 
10 per cent, additional on incomes derived from professions 
and capital. As this additional levy brings in no more 
than two miUion florins (or less than £200,000), it cannot be 
regarded as of any very great assistance to an anxious head of 
the Treasury. The loan of 1910 Ughtened matters for the 
moment, but in view of increased expenditure on pubhc 
objects since that issue some fresh source of revenue of a 
permanent character will have to be found. 
r The following table shows the total revenue and expenditure 
in florins of Holland from the year 1891 to 1910 inclusive — 



Year. 


Revenue. 


Expenditure 


1891 


130.163.000 


130,163.000 


1892 


131.686.000 


151.789,000 


1893 


126.827.000 


134.945.000 


1894 


132,903.000 


131.257.000 


1895 


132.458.000 


133.297.000 


1896 


134.413.000 


133.090.000 


1897 


135.968.000 


138.511.000 


1898 


147.228.000 


150.203.000 


1899 


147.815,000 


149.689.000 


1900 


155.391,000 


154.161.000 


1901 


153.354.000 


152.310.000 


1902 


161.142.000 


162.155.000 


1903 


166.121.000 


163.834.000 


1904 


170.557.000 


175.038.000 


1905 


175.963.000 


173.731.000 


1906 


181.976.000 


177.910.000 



110 



Revenue, Finance, and Debt 



111 



Year. 

1907 
1908 
1909 
1910 


Revenue. 

183.535.000 
183.491.000 
191.303,000 
199.499.000 


Expenditure 
182.099.000 
194.052.000 
197.410.000 
204,747,000 


The Dutch official returns divide the 


revenue un 


heads, viz. — 






Ordinary Receipts 
Sale of Lands 
Extraordinary Receipts 


198,043,000 
600,000 
856.000 



Return for year 1910 . . . . 199,499,000 florins 

If we analyse this total a little more we find the following 
chief contributories — 



Direct Taxes — 

Land Tax 

Personal Tax 

Taxes on Professions 

Tax on Capital 

Direct Taxes — Total 
Excise — 

Sugar. . 

Wine 

Distilled Liquors 

Salt 

Beer and Vinegar . . 

Slaughtering Oxen (capitation) 

Excise — Total 
Indirect Taxes — 

Stamps 

Registration 

Mortgages 

Succession Duties . . 

Indirect Taxes — Total 
Customs Dues 

Domains 

Postal Service 

Telegrams 

State Lottery . . 

Tax on Goldsmiths . . 

Fishing and Shooting Licences 

Pilotage 

Tax on Mines . . 



Grand Total 



14,666,000 
11,520.000 
10,199,000 
10,234.000 



23.674,000 
1.659.000 

28.311.000 
1,815,000 
1,361,000 
5,417.000 



5,703,000 

6,847.000 

696.000 

14.698.000 

13.331.000 



46.619.000 



62.237,000 



27,944,000 

13.331,000 

1.553.000 

15.704.000 

4.097.000 

653.000 

466.000 

163.000 

3.132,000 

31,000 

175.930.000 



112 



Holland of the Dutch 



The difference between this sum and the total of 199,499,000, 
viz., 23,569,000, is made up of minor contributants over two 
hundred in number. The profit, however, on the railways, 
about eleven million florins, forms nearly half of this 
total. 

Considering the magnitude and extent of the trade of 

Holland, the contribution to the revenue from Customs dues 

is very small, no more than 13,331,000 florins, 

Tarifr ^^ £1,110,900. This is only a little over the 

thirteenth part of the total regular revenue, 

whereas in most countries they provide one-fifth or one-sixth 

of the total receipts. The tariff is based on a five per cent. 

scale, the only exceptions above it being beer (50 per cent.), 

pastry and sweets (25 per cent.), tobacco (10 per cent.), petrol 

and honey (8 per cent.). Manufactures of all kinds pass in at 

5 per cent. The financial position of the country, added to 

the restricted area for increased direct taxation, makes it 

probable that an increase in the tariff provides the surest 

source from which a larger revenue to meet the greater 

requirements of the country can be drawn. 

The following table shows the different articles contributing 
to the Customs. Most of them are so small in quantity and 
general demand that it requires no long search to discover 
those that would bear an increased duty with some reasonable 
prospect of helping the Treasury to an appreciable extent. 

Receipts for Customs in 1910 



Tissue Manufactures 


^ 


^ , 


. 2,395,000 


Miscellaneous (unspecified) 


. 2.322,000 


Tea 






. 1.242,000 


Petroleum 






937,000 


Other Oils 






306.000 


W^rought Iron 






898,000 


Clothes 






771,000 


Silks 






651,000 


Cotton patterns 






527,000 


„ plain . . 






257,000 


Paper . . 






451.000 



Revenue, Finance, and Debt 



113 



Receipts for Customs in 1910 — Cont. 



Tobacco 


266.000 


Instruments . . . . . . 


382.000 


Glass . . 


291,000 


Pastry- 
Novelties 


321,000 
243,000 


Carpets 

Fruit fresh and dried 


263,000 
242,000 


Total from eighteen principal 
articles . . 


. 12.765,000 


Total from thirty-five minor 
classified articles 


565.600 



Grand Total 



13,330.600 florins. 



Taxes 
on Income. 



If we pass from Customs to the other sources of revenue, 
we do not find many openings for an increase. With regard 
to direct taxes, it is admitted that the three 
items termed Personal, Professional, and 
Capital imposts do not admit of any increase. 
The personal tax is based on the value of the house, the number 
of hearths, the furniture, the number of servants, the posses- 
sion of a horse, a bicycle or a motor-car — each category being 
made the subject of separate levy, and most of them being 
amenable to the levy of the additional cents, up to ten per 
cent., which goes to the Provincial and Communal funds. 
There is no reason to believe that it can be increased by an 
augmentation of rate. The Dutch householder already feels 
it so heavily that he dispenses with hearths and servants 
as much as he can, and never expends his money lavishly on 
furnishing his house. As for the possession of horses and 
motor-cars, they are only for a very restricted class, and the 
supply of horses, except for farming purposes — ^is limited and 
declining. 

The Land Tax, which brings in nearly 20 per cent, more 
than any of the other direct taxes, seems to allow of little 
or no increase. In four out of the eleven provinces, the 
total shows a marked decline and in all of them the proportion 

8— (2390) 



114 Holland of the Dutch 

of exemptions and suspensions for various causes is increasing. 
Any addition to the burden would be extremely unpopular, 

and as a general conclusion it may be safely 
The Land Tax. declared that no addition to direct taxation, 

which already produces three and a half 
times the amount from Customs, comes within the sphere 
of practical politics. 

With regard to Excise and indirect taxes, which at present 
bring in nearly half the revenue, there is wider scope for 

additions. A large quantity of sugar (molas- 
Indirect Taxes, ses and glucose), salt, methylated and other 

spirits, all used for either distilling or manu- 
facturing purposes, are exempted from Excise. Nearly 
12,000 tons of salt and over 13,000 tons of sugar are admitted 
into the country free in this form. In 1909, an exceptional 
year, the total of sugar exceeded 31,000 tons — ^this sugar being, 
of course, molasses and the saccharine processes for the 
distilleries, and not for domestic purposes. 

The price of sugar is one of the domestic tragedies of Dutch 
life, its market price being exactly double what it is in England. 

For this reason loaf sugar is always served 
Sugar. in a powdered form not quite as fine as castor 

sugar ; and when sugar is offered in the lump 
it is generally presented as a great luxury in a dainty paper 
packet as an accompaniment of the coffee. The little packet 
contains two lumps, no more, no less. 

When we turn to the side of expenditure, we find the 
principal outlay comes under six heads, one of which, the 

interest and sinking fund of the debt, has not 
Expenditure, greatly varied in the last twenty-five years. 

The principal increases in the last ten years 
have been under the heads of Interior, Navy, and Army. 
The expenditure of the Interior or Home Department rose 
from 16,682,106 florins in 1902 to 34,961,284 in 1910, and 
this increase was mainly due to the development of education 
and the larger participation of the State in the matter. 



Revenue, Finance, and Debt 



115 



Besides this increase the expenditure on Navy and Army 
reads small. Taking the same years, the Navy rose from 
16,524,712 to 20,123,305 ; and the Army from 23,424,090 to 
28,467,313, and in 1912 this had further risen to 30,299,059. 
Indeed, military expenditure is likely to increase in Holland, as 
in most other States, for it is only a form of national insiurance. 

The follo\ving table shows the total State expenditure for 
the year 1910, divided under the twelve official headings — 



(1) 


The Sovereign (really Royal 




Household — Huis der 






Koningin) 


, 


800.000 


(2) 


The Legislature, etc. 


719,260 


(3) 


Foreign Department 


1,119,103 


(4) 


Justice 




9,621,316 


(5) 


Interior 




. 34,961,284 


(6) 


Navy 




. 20,123,305 


(7a) 


National Debt 




. 36,585,001 


(7b) 


Finance 




. 27,046,608 


(8) 


War 




. 28,467,313 


(9) 


Waterstaat . . 




. 34,213,399 


(10) 


Land . . . . 




8,127,467 


(11) 


Colonies 




2,926,663 


(12) 


Unforeseen . . 




36,606 




204.747,325 



The Sovereign's Civil List, or more correctly, State salary, 
is fixed at each accession by mutual agreement. When Queen 
Wilhelmina took over personal rule it was arranged that it 
should be 800,000 florins, but sometimes the amount is in- 
creased by a special grant as in 1911, when it rose to 945,000 
florins. The new law of 1913 fixes it at 900,000 florins al- 
together. No allowance is made to the Prince Consort, but in 
the event of the Queen predeceasing him he is guaranteed a 
pension of 150,0(X) florins. This is the sum which is also paid 
to the Queen-Mother Emma, who gained the esteem of the 
Dutch people by the prudence and tact she displayed in the 
difficult part of Regent. The sums mentioned may not seem 
very large according to English ideas, but in Holland they 
are regarded as positively generous. 



116 



Holland of the Dutcli 



Pensions to public functionaries form an important item in 

the expenditure of each Department, and are divided into 

several sections. There are first the allow- 

Pensions. ances to unattached officials. Next come the 

regular pensions to the retired members of the 

services. In the third place, there are the pensions to the 

widows and children of officials who died in active service. 

Of these divisions the first is necessarily the smallest and least 

important — ^263 officials receiving allowances of 70,953 

florins. The figures are those of 1909, the last return issued. 

Coming to the regular pension list, we find 4,051 pensioned 
officials receiving 3,062,331 florins, or an average of 750 
florins (£62 10s.). To these totals must be added the figures 
for retired teachers of primary education. They showed in 
1909— 



State Schools. 
Number. Amount. 



Private Schools, 
partial aid. 
Number. Amount. 



Males 
Females 
Widows 
Children 

Total 



396 
140 
164 
263 



321,232 
60.579 
74,468 
13.747 



106 
46 
61 
98 



80,062 

17.076 

27,454 

5.032 



963 472.026 



311 129.624 



Turning to the pensions of the regular service, we find — 

Number. Amount. 

Widows .. .. 4.063 1.410,498 
Orphans (mother 

living) .. .. 2.094 114.707 
Orphans (both parents 

dead) .. .. 338 23.221 

In concluding this chapter, a few words may be said about 
the National Debt. 

The figures quoted a few pages back giving the total revenue 
and expenditure record an increase of revenue in the twenty 
years of 53*275 per cent, and in expenditure of 57*3. As they 
also disclose a deficit, which, in the three years, 1908-10, 



Revenue, Finance, and Debt 



117 



amounted to two millions sterling, and as this sum had 

to be made up by a public loan in 1910 the following 

The National table showing the growth in the public debt 

Debt. of Holland becomes interesting and invites 

study as the complement of the Budget. 



Year. 


Amount of Debt. 


Interest Paid 


1903 


1.137,116.676 


31.352.842 


1904 


1,133.415.556 


31.097.959 


1905 


1,106.492.076 


31.640.242 


1906 


1.144.961.426 


32.009.411 


1907 


1.139.679.626 


31.671,196 


1908 


1.134,064.426 


31,673,204 


1909 


1.128.385,260 


31,612,632 


1910 


1.122.659,710 


31,351,256 


1911 


1.116.870.310 


32,122,544 


1912 


1,163.455.660 


32.437.363 



There is nothing in these figures to suggest any unsoundness 
or instabihty in Dutch finance, and this impression is rather 
strengthened than weakened if the survey is carried back for 
a longer period. It will be sufficient to say here that the debt 
in 1911 as compared with 1850 showed a diminution of 
70,354,540 (nearly six millions sterling) in the total, and of 
3,963,882 florins in the annual charges ; and this diminution 
takes into account the new 1910 loan for 52,492,700 florins. 

The prices of the Dutch 2 J and 3 per cent. Rentes in the 
years given below will show their variation. 







Lowest 


Highest 


^ear. 


Stock. 


Price. 


Price. 


1881 


. 2i % 


64| 


68 


»i • 


. 3 o/o 


76f 


83^ 


1890 . 


. 2i % 


77f 


84 


»» • 


. 3 % 


91 


99 


1901 


. 2i 0/^ 


76 


81 


»» • 


. 3 % 


89f 


95i 


1910 . 


. 2i % 


72 


77f 


»» • 


. 3 % 


87i 


92i 



The facts and figures placed before the reader in this 
chapter prove that the financial condition of Holland is quite 
sound and healthy, the total burden of State contributions 



118 Holland of the Dutch 

averaging thirty-four florins per head of population, or less 
than £3. It is clear, however, that the Dutch Government, 
resembling in this respect every other, will have to provide 
larger sums for urgent national requirements than ever in 
the past. A certain rigidity and reluctance to impose new 
taxes or to increase those in force may be noticed, but there 
can be no doubt that under the pressure of necessity the 
Dutch Government will seek to utilise some of those sources 
of revenue which are at present either untouched or little 
developed. 



CHAPTER XIII 

THE POPULATION — VITAL AND SOCIAL CONDITIONS 

In order to have a solid foundation for an opinion as to the 
stability of a country and the weU-being of its people it is 

necessary to possess some knowledge of its 
StaSSfcs. ^^tal and social conditions. This knowledge 

can only be acquired by examining the sta- 
tistics published by the State and by deducing from them some 
generally instructive conclusions. If the reader finds statis- 
tics of any kind too heavy or exacting for his attention, then 
this chapter can be passed over. If, on the other hand, they 
interest him he can make his own conclusions for himself by 
comparing the figures with the corresponding ones in other 
countries. 

Holland contains by the cadastral survey 3,411,211 hec- 
tares, or 8,528,027 acres. In 1833 the area was less by 140,252 

hectares, but much of the difference is due 
Area. to the inclusion of water areas in the later 

statistics. The gain to the land by drainage, 
however, is certainly not less than 35,000 hectares since 
1861. 

The population, according to the census of 1909, was 
5,858,175, whereas in 1830, after the loss of Belgium, it had 

been only 2,613,487. Assuming the rate of 
Population, the last ten years to have been sustained, it 

must at the end of 1912 have exceeded 
6,100,000. The last censas shows a population of 439 
to the square mile. (8,528,027 acres = 13,325 sq. ms. 
circa.) 

The larger half, viz., 3,488,219, still inhabit the country 
or towns with a lower population than 20,000, while 2,369,940 
dwell in the thirty-one communes containing over 20,000 

119 



120 



Holland of the Dutch 



inhabitants. Dividing the population by sex, there are 
2,959,050 women to 2,899,125 men, the ratio per cent, being 
50'51 to 49-49. Dividing it again by the civil status, the 
returns show — 



Unmarried — 




Men 


.. 1.806,388 


Women 


.. 1.770.938 


Married — 




Men 


990.991 


"Women 


993.171 


Widowers 


96.269 


Wido'w's . . 


186.735 


Divorced Persons — 




Men 


3.843 


Women 


6.102 


Separated— 




Men 


1.551 


Women 


2.082 


Unspecified — 




Men 


83 


Women 


22 


Total 


. . 5,858.175 



Foreigners in 
Holland. 



The foreign colony, chiefly Germans and Belgians, is not 

very large. There were 37,534 Germans, 18,338 Belgians, 

2,645 French, 2,102 EngUsh, and 9,363 of aU 

other nationalities combined resident in 

HoUand in 1909. 

The Dutch are a long-Uved people. In 1909 there were 

18,654 men and 24,702 women who had reached eighty years 

and over. 

The health of the nation is particularly good, showing the 
natural increase of population to be at the high rate of fifteen 
per thousand per annum, or per cent, for the 
Statistics. decennial period. In 1910 there were 42,740 
marriages, 168,894 hving births, and 79,984 
deaths — an excess of births of 88,910. Since 1891 the death- 
rate had fallen from 2*07 per cent, to r36 per annum, and the 
birth-rate from 3 37 to 2*86 ; but the normal increase rose 



Population — Vital and Social Conditions 121 

from 1*30 to 1*50, the decline in the birth-rate being more 
than compensated for by the improved health of the 
community. 

Of all the great towns, Rotterdam and The Hague have 

made the largest proportional increase in population since 

1830. In that year The Hague had 56,105 

Large Cities inhabitants ; in 1910 the total had risen to 

280,515. Rotterdam had 72,204 at the 

earlier date ; it has now 426,888. In 1830 Amsterdam was 

the only city with over 100,000 inhabitants. It had 202,364, 

which has now become 573,983. The day may not be very 

far distant when Rotterdam will have caught it up, for it has 

more open space for expansion than the other city. 

Emigration from Holland is very limited. In 1910, an 

average year, only 3,220 persons left the country, and of 

those 2,984 went to North America. Of 

Emigration, course, the emigrants to the Indies are not 

included in these figures, and those who 

survive the Tropics are expected to return some day or other, 

as the great majority certainly do. 

There are thirty-three lunatic asylums in Holland, whose 

inmates numbered at the end of 1909, 5,931 men and 5,815 

women. During the course of that year, 

Lunatics. 1,351 men and 1,309 women were admitted. 

The total number of deaths in the twelve 

months were 436 men and 394 women. Cures were reported 

in the cases of 336 men and 395 women, and 128 men and 158 

women left the asylum for different reasons but not as 

cured. 

Of the total of 2,660 persons admitted during 1909— 

305 were under twenty 1,423 were unmarried 

1,577 between twenty and forty-nine 941 married 

778 above fifty 296 widowers, widows 

and divorced persons 

2,660 2.660 



122 Holland of the Dutch 

The statistics relating to the blind show a total of 1,349 
men and 1,361 women. Of these 212 and 139 respectively 
were under fifteen years of age. 

With regard to deaf and dumb persons, there were 1,228 men 
and 1,077 women. 

In connection with the conscription and the annual levy 

for the Army, statistics of height are carefully recorded up 

^ . to 5 ft. 6i in. Those of that height and 

Statistics 
of Height. anything above it are classed together, and 

in 1910 formed 45*61 per cent, of the inscribed 
total. Those between 5 ft. 2} in. and 5 ft. 6J in. formed 
46*54 per cent. ; those between 5 ft. 1 in. and 5 ft. 2f in., 
5*87 ; and under 5*1 the remainder or 1*98. The tallest men 
come from Friesland, North Holland, Utrecht and Groningen ; 
the shortest from North Brabant and Limburg. A compara- 
tive table in the last census shows a remarkable increase of 
stature in the last fifty years. 

Statistics throw a clear light on the social condition and 
prosperity of a country. The occupations and professions 

of the nation are divided in Holland under 
^^^ ' thirty-six heads, which include those without 

profession or occupation, the bulk of whom are 

children. The latest of these tabular returns is based on the 

census of 1899, when the population of the country was only 

5,104,137. Of that total— 

1,023,444 males 
2,149,987 females 



3,173,431 were without profession 

1,930,706 living as workers of one kind or other 



5,104,137 (population of 1899) 

The largest ''number were naturally absorbed in agriculture, 
the figures being 490,694 men and 79,584 women. The 
following table gives the order in numbers of the principal 
employments, distinguishing the sexes from one another — 



Population — Vital and Social Conditions 123 

Occupation. Males. Females. Total. 

Agriculture .. .. 490.694 79.584 570,278 

Commerce .. .. 146,929 39,181 186.110 
Building Trade and 

Public Works . . 144,377 523 144,900 
Transport and Com- 
merce .. .. 125.926 10.153 136.079 
Food Factories . . .. 109,258 5,084 114,342 
State Employ . . . . 33,989 257 34,246 
General Workers, no 

special trade . . .. 33,219 17 33,296 

Textile Industry . . 34,878 14.608 49.486 

Metal Workers . . . . 39.645 679 40,324 

Diamond Cutters .. 8,860 1,091 9,951 

Glass Workers . . . . 22,828 2,317 25.145 

In the following the females exceed the males — 

Occupation. Males. Females. Total. 

Domestic service .. 7,930 189,581 197,511 

Clothes and Dyeing .. 36,081 55,486 91.567 
Teaching, not State 

Employ .. .. 6,860 8,268 15,128 

Labour is organised in Holland and the syndicates are 

registered at a Central State Bureau. Although the total 

number of members in 1911 was no more 

^l^l than 153,689, there were 2,359 syndicates 

or unions with an average membership of 

65*15 to each. With regard to the hours of labour, the great 

majority work between ten and eleven hours. In the last 

twelve years wages have risen between 20 and 25 per cent. 

In 1910 there were 12 lock-outs and 131 strikes. In 26 strikes 

the men succeeded, in 52 they failed, and in 48 there was a 

compromise. 

The cost of the principal articles of food is rather less than 
it is here. Wheaten bread is less than 2id. for the 2J lb. 
loaf. Rye bread is Ifd. for the same weight. 
Prii^s Butter is Is. a pound, beef only 6d., and pota- 

toes less than Jd. The only article that is 
really dear is sugar. Vegetables and fish are far cheaper 
than in England. The British pabUc wiU have to reconsider 
its views about the cost of food in Continental States. Mutton 



124 HoUand of the Dutch 

is almost a luxury in Holland, but there is plenty of beef, veal, 
and pork of the first quality. The best cheeses, like that of 
Edam, can be bought for 6d. a pound. 

Assistance to the out of work and the indigent poor is well 
organised. It is dispensed by private bodies and by the 
municipalities. 

In 1908 the municipalities had under them 1,060 institutions 

of a general character. There were also under public direction 

1,199 relief centres or distributing offices. 

Institutions. Those in connection with the different 

churches were the most numerous of all, viz., 

4,052 ; institutions under private direction totalled 819. 

Many of these societies or guilds only distribute food in winter, 

but hospitals, homes for the poor, and l5dng-in hospitals are 

included in all the totals. 

The returns for 1908 showed that 278,105 were assisted 
in a general way, that 72,069 received outside medical treat- 
ment from visiting doctors and nurses, that 
Hospitals. 4,401 confinements were treated in the 
lying-in hospitals, that 86,940 persons were 
either in or out-patients of the hospitals and asylums, and 
that work was found for 3,941 applicants. These figures 
show that there is much poverty and distress existing in 
Holland side by side with great affluence and prosperity. 

The figures of the Post Office Savings Bank are interesting. 
At the close of the year 1910 there were 1,510,033 books out, 
and 83,650 accounts had been closed during 
^^1^ that year. The balance in hand from 
depositors' payments was 164,277,593 florins 
(say £13,689,799), but for the only time on record the payments 
out including interest in the year named exceeded the pay- 
ments in. The average in the previous ten years had been an 
excess of deposits of about five million florins. The average 
balance per account open was 109 florins, and it is curious 
to note that the highest savings were found in the least Dutch 
provinces of Limburg and Nord Brabant. 



Population — Vital and Social Conditions 125 

There are several institutions for helping financially the 
different classes of the community who do not possess capital. 

The most modest of these are the caisses, which take charge 
of the working man's savings during the good months of 
summer so that he may be able to draw upon them when work 
is difficult to find in winter. These spaarkassen (spare cash) 
play but a modest role. In 1909 3,767 persons had paid 
in but 240,000 florins and drawn out 181,000. 

The Hulphanken — i.^., banks for making advances to working 
men — advanced in 1909 3,193,000 florins to 12,389 persons ; 
and the loss during the year on unrecoverable debts was only 
4,026 florins ('125 per cent.). 

The Boerenleenbanken are intended to help the farming 
classes on the Raiffeisen system, and are what we would call 
Agricultural Banks. There are 603 branches in the kingdom, 
and in 1909 they advanced to 8,812 persons, sums totalling 
6,370,000 florins. The total loans outstanding at the end of 
the year named amounted to 13,508,000 florins or over a 
milUon sterling. The business seems one of a profitable 
character, for the net profit at the end of the year named 
amounted to 108,000 florins. 

Finally, in the list of loan offices we come to the pawn shops, 
which are politely called Banken van Leening (Lending 
Banks). These are of two kinds, those con- 
Shops, trolled by the Communes, and those run by 
private firms. There are no returns from the 
latter since 1890, with the exception of a few farmed out by the 
Communes. These had dwindled down to one in the year 1909. 

The sixteen communal pawn shops lent (1909) on 2,110,000 
articles the total sum of 8,063,000 florins. In the same 
period 2,066,000 articles on which 7,932,000 florins had been 
lent were reclaimed. In the same period 70,000 pledged 
articles were sold for 258,000 florins, proving that they were 
articles belonging to the very poor. The sales showed a profit 
of 15,000 florins. The costs of administration were 269,000 
florins or about 3 per cent. 



CHAPTER XIV 

COMMERCE, RAILWAYS, AND INDUSTRY 

Although much of Holland's trade, like that of Belgium, is 
one merely of transit, there remains sufficient to put the 
country in the fourth place among the great commercial 
nations of Europe. This ascendancy is to be mainly explained 
in the case of this small country by its enormous agricultural 
and horticultural productiveness which has been already 
discussed. In proof of this it may be mentioned that cereals, 
butter, fish and eggs represent over one-fourth of the total 
exports of Holland. 

The returns of the country's trade are divided into two 

categories. There is first of all the General Trade, which 

includes everything, meaning transport trade 

Special Trade. ^^ ^^^^ ^^ ^^^* ^^ commercial transactions ; 
and then there is the return of Special Trade, 
which gives the true state of trade in the country. With 
regard to the former, the statistics can necessarily give only 
weight not value, for freight is decided by bulk, and the total 
General Trade is, therefore, merely expressed as follows — 

Tons. 

Imports 47,580.000 

Exports 35,530,000 

From these totals together, for no distinction is made 

Transit between imports and exports, have to be 

Trade. deducted the transport trade, which is thus 

particularised — 

Tons. 
Transport trade — 

With unloading . . .. 1.828,000 

Without „ .. .. 10.856.000 



12.684,000 
which leaves the bulk of the Special Trade at 70,426,000 tons, 

126 



Commerce, Railways, and Industry 127 

i.e., 83,110,000 minus 12,684,000, thus making the transport 
trade about 15 per cent, of the whole. 
Turning now to the special trade, we find its value given as — 

Florins. 
Imports .. .. 3,265,000,000 

Exports .. .. 2,632.000,000 

Together . . 5,897,000,000 

or about 491,416,500 pounds sterling. 

The mere citing of those figures is sufficient to show the 
immense prosperity of the country. Some of the details are 
interesting. 

Butter was exported to the extent of 32,866 tons, valued 

at 1,000 florins the ton, or a total of 32,866,000 florins. The 

« .. ^ J whole, of a value in English money of 
Butter Trade. ^^ _^^ i or • ^ j. t- i j 

£2,738,125, is sent to England. 

Eggs are also measured and valued by the ton, and the 
total for 1910 is given at 20,105 tons at 450 florins the ton, 
or a total value of 9,047,250 florins, or £753,937. By far 
the greater part of these also were sent to England. 

The trade in artificial butter and margarine is also immense, 

the export being for 56,400 tons at 800 florins the ton, or a 

total value of 45,120,000 florins, the equiva- 

^Buft^r^ lent of £3,760,000. One of the greatest 

margarine factories in the country is at Oss, 

between Nijmegen and Bois-le-Duc, and it is mentioned here 

because its proprietor, Mr. Jurens, employs only English 

clerks in his counting-house, and runs it on the lines of an 

English Joint Stock Company. 

Coffee, of course, figures as both an import and an export, 
the latter exceeding the former by nearly 50 per cent. While 
79,000 tons were imported 120,000 tons were exported, the 
latter being valued at 440 florins per ton, or a total of 
52,800,000 florins, that is £4,400,000. In connection with 
coffee, it is interesting to note that a very considerable part 
of it is that imported from Java and Sumatra and sold on 
Government account at public auction. Colonial produce 



128 



Holland of the Dutch 



sold in this manner reached in 1910 the high total value of 

2J millions sterling. 

Trade with ^he following table shows the principal 

Principal countries with which Holland carried on 

Countries. trade, and their participation in her exports 

and imports (in florins) — 

Imports. 
Belgium 301.000.000 



Exports. 

330,000.000 

545.000.000 
24,000.000 

113.000,000 
1,226.000,000 
60,000,000 
32,000,000 
84,000,000 
4,000,000 
15,000.000 
18.500.000 



Great Britain .. .. 324.000,000 

France 38,000,000 

Java 493,000,000 

Prussia 760,000,000 

Hamburg 54,500,000 

Bremen 5,300,000 

U.S.A 295,000,000 

British India .. .. 81,000.000 

Russia 433,000,000 

Sweden 52,000,000 

The Dutch mercantile fleet is very considerable, and the 

trade of Amsterdam and Rotterdam is largely carried on in 

Dutch bottoms. During the year 1910, 

Navigation. 14,874 steamers and sailing ships of a total 

tonnage of 39,718,000, entered Dutch ports, 

and 16,258 of a total tonnage of 45,842,000 sailed from them. 

The Dutch share in this navigation amounted to 4,293 ships 

of 10,709,000 tons for the incoming traffic, and 4,553 ships 

of 11,969,000 tons for the outgoing. Holland therefore 

participates to the extent of about 2t of the total. 

In 1910 there were 11,778 Dutch seamen employed on 

Dutch ships. Of these 1,945 served on saiUng ships and 9,833 

on steamships. The crews are classified as follows — 

764 



Second-Captains 


.. 1.251 


Mates . . 


180 


Engineers 


989 


Stokers . . 


.. 2.126 


Carpenters 


185 


Sailors . . 


. . 2.605 


Others 


3.678 


Total 


.. 11.778 






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Commerce, Railways, and Industry 129 

As between Amsterdam and Rotterdam there is now not 
much difference in the shipping registered at each port. In 
1910 the number of ships and tonnage at the two places was — 

^1"^^^ Tons. 2*^^^- Tons. 

Snips. snips. 

Rotterdam .. 39 13,143 181 281,925 

Amsterdam .. — — 187 277.812 

In the last ten years, contrary to the general opinion, 
Amsterdam has forged ahead faster than its rival, but of course 
this relates to native-owned ships, for at Rotterdam foreign 
ships are in marked and increasing ascendancy. 

There are five principal Dutch hues for passenger service. 
They are the " Nederland," the Rotterdam Lloyd, the Neder- 
land American, the Royal Nederland, and the Zeeland. The 
last named runs the postal service steamers from Flushing to 
Queensborough and Folkestone, and this route is patronised by 
every patriotic Dutchman. It is a very good service, but the 
ships are in no way superior to those on the British hne from 
Harwich to the Hook of Holland. This Hne is somewhat 
boycotted by the Dutch, more especially since the Berlin 
accident, but it is largely used by Germans. 

In 1910 there were 3,190 kilometres, or nearly 2,000 miles, 
of railways in working order in Holland. Of these 1,796 ks. 
were State railways, and 1,127 ks. were 
Railways! owned by the Dutch Railway Company — 
the 267 remaining kilometres being chiefly 
148 ks. of the Dutch Central line and 52 ks. as the Dutch por- 
tion of the Boxtel Wesel line, which is run by an essentially 
German, although nominally mixed, company. The cost 
of constructing these lines seems to have been 380,000,000 
florins, or about 130,000 florins per kilometre. 

Of the total distance only 1,459 ks. were double railed. 
From another statistical return we learn that in the year 
mentioned there were 1,142 engines, 2,970 coaches for passen- 
gers, and 19,944 wagons for goods as the total rolling stock 
of the kingdom. 

9— (3390) 



130 Holland of the Dutch 

Dutch railways are very well built, especially those that 
are double railed, and some of the bridges and causeways 

are fine examples of engineering skill. Note- 
Brfdge."^ worthy among these are the eastern Unes 

flanking the Zuyder Zee, which are carried 
over causeways that stand somewhat above the level of the 
highest floods on record. This is especially noticeable in the 
somewhat desolate province of Drenthe, where the collection 
of peat represents the chief industry and resource of the 
people. But the Dutch are proudest of the famous bridge 
over the Moerdijk, which is nearly 1,700 yards in length. 
It crosses the Hollandsch Diep between Rosendael and 
Dordrecht, and presents an imposing appearance more 
especially when viewed from the passenger steamer plying 
between Antwerp and the last-named city. 

The number of passengers totalled 46,221,000, of whom — 

1,640,000 were 1st class 
10,134,000 „ 2nd „ 
32.696.000 „ 3rd ., 

1,751.000 „ at reduced fares 

4"6.22 1.000 

Reduced fares are those for which travellers take out a 
kilometric book, and pay at a fixed rate per kilometre actually 
travelled. This means a great reduction in cost and fulfils 
in a simple and practical manner the role of the season ticket 
in England. During the summer months travellers have 
another great privilege. What are called vacantie karten are 
issued from 1st July to 1st October. For the sum of four 
florins, 1st class, and three florins, 2nd class, a traveller can 
take a ticket from one end of Holland to the other ; for 
instance, from Flushing to Groningen. There is, however, 
one obUgation on him, as he has to travel straight through to 
his destination. It is also obvious that the system does not 
help for short journeys, and the foreigner has always to make 
a careful comparison with the regular fare before deciding to 
take a vacantie karten or not. Railway fares are not high in 



Commerce, Railways, and Industry 131 



Holland, and most people with any pretension to gentility 

travel first class. It is worth noting, however, that there is no 

reduction on return tickets, which are always the double fare. 

The total receipts from the railways were, for passengers — 

Florins. 
1st class . . . . . . 2,630,000 

2nd „ 7,880,000 

Receipts. 3rd 13,071,000 

Special Tickets .. .. 7,113,000 

30,694.000 



The receipts from goods traffic were nearly as heavy, 
amounting to 29,548,000 florins ; so that the total income 
of all the railways from both sources amounted to 60,242,000 
florins, or a httle over five miUions sterhng. 

Goods were carried to the extent of over 16,000,000 tons. 
These are differentiated as follows — 



Tons. 

78.000 

293,000 

1,151,000 

13.667,000 

524.000 

317.000 



Travellers' luggage 
Goods by fast train 
., by slow ,, 
by goods „ 
Official or Administration Parcels 
Horses and Cattle (in number) 

In addition, 20,000 carriages were also conveyed over the 
different systems. 

Dutch railways are, therefore, in a flourishing state, and 
show a profit on the working expenses of not less than 25 per 
cent. The following figures give the working cost and the 
receipts of the four groups into which the railways of the 
country are divided — 

Working 



Group. 


Expenses. 


Receipts. 


Profit. 


State Railways 


28,540.000 


33,878,000 


5,338.000 


Dutch Railway Company . . 


20,430,000 


25,751,000 


5.321.000 


Central Railway Company . . 


1.926.000 


2,700.000 


774.000 


Boxtel to Wesel 


815.000 


1.164,000 


349.000 


Totals 


51,711.000 


63,493.000 


11.782.000 
(or nearly 














one milloin 








sterling) 



132 



Holland of the Dutch 



With regard to the kilometre books just mentioned, there 

is one peculiar feature that deserves to be noticed. These 

books are issued for a special total number of 

^Bo^^s?^ kilometres, generaUy 1,000, but that total is 

too high for the ordinary Dutch traveller, 

and if there were no way of getting over the difficulty this fact 

would curtail the use of the book and restrict its sale. There 

is a ready market for half or quarter used kilometre books, 

which can be passed from hand to hand through the medium 

of a recognised agent, generally a tobacconist or newsagent. 

The applicant for a partially used book says : "I want one for 

250 kilometres," and then he is sooner or later accommodated 

by some one who has that amount unused. As the transactions 

are quite numerous, the apphcant will not have very long to 

wait. 

Considering the number of passengers carried, accidents are 
very rare in • Holland, as the following table for 1910 
shows — 



Number of derailments . . . . . . 41 

,, collisions . . . . . . 28 

„ other accidents . . . . 27 

Passengers killed . . 

„ ,, through their own fault 

„ injured 

„ ,, through their own fault 

Employees killed . . 

„ ,, through their own fault 

„ ,, whilst coupling trains 

,, injured 

„ ,, through their own fault 

,, ,, whilst coupling trains 

Other persons, neither travellers nor employees 

Killed (8 suicides) 

Injured 

Total (53 killed. 119 injured). . 





3 

29 

15 

7 

7 

12 

31 

13 

14 

24 
17 

172 



Any description of Dutch railways that omitted a brief 
notice of the tramways would be incomplete. The light 
railway as known in England and Belgium does not exist. 



Commerce, Railways, and Industry 133 

although many of the single rail lines are practically of 
this category. Tramways are now of two categories — steam 

and electric. In the large towns all trams 
Tramways. are driven by electric power, and the 

carriages, painted in cream, are particularly 
attractive-looking, but we need not concern ourselves about 
them here. 

The trams which serve as means of communication between 
towns and their neighbours supplement the main railways, 
and are practically identical with light railways. On the 
last day of 1909 there were altogether in working 
order — 

2,111 kilometres of single-railed trams, and 
227 „ „ double- „ 

They carried in the year over 153,000,000 passengers, and 
more than 1,330,000 tons of merchandise, and the receipts 
were over 12,842,000 florins, or above a million sterling. 
But a great extension has taken place since 1909, and hues 
are being laid down in all directions, more especially in the 
undeveloped districts bordering the eastern frontier and 
across North Brabant. The new lines are almost entirely 
worked by electricity, and generally by the overhead system. 
One of the most important of them is that between Maestricht 
and the German frontier at Vaals, on the main road to Aix-la- 
Chapelle. This has been under discussion for a great many 
years, but there now seems to be a chance of its being seriously 
undertaken. The line will help to open up a part of South 
Limburg, which is at present very ill-suppUed with means 
of communication. Another much-needed line has been 
taken in hand north of Venlo, traversing a region on the right 
bank of the Meuse, which the Dutch Government had 
singularly neglected. This is practically ready for 
exploitation. 

A word may be said about telegraphs and telephones. In 
1911, with regard to the former, 7,526 kilometres of routes 



134 Holland of the Dutch 

and 36,884 kilometres of wires were in working order. The 
offices at which telegrams were received numbered 1,048, 

or about half the number of communes in 
VeSphones." *^^ kingdom. As in England, the telegraph 

service does not pay; the receipts being only 
2,544,000 florins, and the expenses 4,180,000 florins. For 
lovers of statistics, it may be mentioned that over six million 
messages were despatched or received in the year 1910. 

The telephone service, which is exceptionally developed in 
the large towns, and notably in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and 
The Hague, where, practically speaking, every house possesses 
a telephone, is now beginning to be remunerative, the service 
in 1910 showing a surplus of 86,000 florins. About 67,000 
kilometres of wires were working, and about 10,000 kilometres 
of new wires are added annually. The telephone has become 
an indispensable adjunct of civilisation in Holland. In 1911 
the number of subscribers in the three chief cities exceeded 
25,000. 

Finally, the transactions of the Post Office reveal some 
remarkable features. Letters to a total of 112,293,000 for the 

home service and of 51,846,000 for the exterior 
Office!^ service passed through the post. Post cards, 

which are somewhat discredited in England, 
are exceedingly popular in Holland, where as many as 
88,942,386 were sent in the year 1910. These do not include 
those with a reply-paid card, which numbered 583,518 in the 
year named. Besides these for internal use, there were 
16,451,443 cards to foreign countries, as well as 117,008 with 
replies. Post cards have become so generally used in Holland 
that they have to a great extent superseded letter writing, 
and communications of a private or semi-confidential character 
are made on them which would find no other place in another 
country than in a sealed envelope. But they appeal irre- 
sistibly to the national habit of thrift which finds a vent in 
the desire to save a few cents on every transaction. 

Industrial enterprises in Holland represent a total capitalised 



Commerce, Railways, and Industry 135 



sum of 250 millions sterling. The following table shows some 
of the principal industries and the amount of capital invested 
in them — 



Nature of 
Industry. 

Transport 

Breweries 

Distilleries 

Banks 

Insurance 

General Commerce, wholesale 

„ „ retail 

Sugar Factories of all kinds 
Metal Factories 
Books and Newspapers 
Hotels 

Margarine, etc. . . 
Chemicals 
Flour and Bread 
Tobacco 
Theatres 

Coffee and Cocoa Factories 
Jam Manufacture 



Capital invested 
(Florins). 
560,000.000 
440,000,000 
350,000,000 
346,000,000 
250,000,000 
240,000.000 
47,500,000 
199.500,000 
49.000.000 
31,000.000 
31.000.000 
20.000.000 
18.600.000 
18.500,000 
8.100,000 
7,000.000 
6.650.000 
4.500,000 
3,500,000 



Coal 
Mines. 



Soap 

Mines are rare in Holland, and may be regarded as restricted 
to the province of Limburg, where they are productive and 
prosperous, mainly through the energy sup- 
phed by the intervention of French capitahsts. 
In this region, which may be roughly defined 
as lying between Sittard and Heerlen, there are six separate 
coal mines, one worked by the State and five by private com- 
panies. The State mine (1910) employs 1,092 persons, raises 
191,903 tons of coal, and the value of the output is given as 
1,326,000 florins. The coal was sold at an average price of 
seven florins a ton. 

The five private companies employ 5,338 persons, raise 
1,100,386 tons, which are valued at 6,905,000 florins. At 
present the coal region is hmited to the south-east corner of 
Limburg, but there is no doubt that it extends far northwards, 
and it is not improbable that this belt continues to as far as 
the neighbourhood of Venlo. What the Dutch would very 



136 Holland of the Dutch 

much like to know is whether coal exists west of the Meuse, 
and whether the discoveries in the Belgian Campine are the 
prelude to similar ones in the province of Nord Brabant. At 
present all that is being done consists in boring for petroleum, 
but as a general rule there is very little Dutch capital available 
for these home undertakings. 

The commerce and industry of the country reveal the high 
state of prosperity to which Holland has attained, but every 
one agrees that Dutch activity is slumbering, and that the 
people there are content with what they possess rather than 
bestirring themselves to develop and multiply the existing 
resources. This means that by the growth of the population, 
and the comparatively superior development of other nations 
this prosperity is arrested and confined. As labour is propor- 
tionally far less remunerated in Holland than in any other 
of the leading European States, it is clear that the time must 
come when necessity will drive Dutch capitalists to make an 
increased effort to develop the barren or less productive 
parts of the land, and to increase the territorial area by 
draining some part at least of the Zuyder Zee. 



CHAPTER XV 

AGRICULTURE 

The basis of all national prosperity if it is to endure must be 

the cultivation of the land, but in Holland agriculture plays 

a more important part than in most countries. 

Cultivation. ^^^ ^^ ^^^ converted a poor soil into one of the 

most fertile and productive regions in Europe. 

In the course of centuries Holland has been provided by 

importation, building up and ceaseless renovation, with a 

new top layer of mould, as it were, which furnishes unequalled 

pasturage, vegetable and flower gardens, forcing beds on a 

large scale, such as are not to be found elsewhere. It is all 

highly artificial, but as one sees the vast herds of Frisia and 

Groningen amid the waving green of the polders, the feeling 

of admiration is not diminished by the reflection that this is 

the work of man rather than of Nature. 

Four-fifths of the firm land of Holland is under cultivation, 
and it increases as the peat wastes of Brabant and Drenthe 
are drained and brought under cultivation. 
Peat. Peat has played a great part in the develop- 

ment and reclamation of Holland. It was 
discovered long ago that the blending of peat and sand made 
a very good earth, which contained considerable powers of 
restraining subsoil waters. Thus was obtained to a great 
extent the firm bottom so much needed in the western pro- 
vinces. Peat is still used as largely for building up the dykes 
as it is for purposes of fuel. The production from the tour- 
bieres runs into hundreds of millions of blocks, and as the 
peat-fields are exhausted the land is drained with the view of 
being turned into orchards or used for arable purposes. The 
more usual course is to begin with fruit cultivation, and this 
with a double end. The great defect of Holland is the absence 

137 



138 Holland of the Dutch 

of wood. Less than 6 per cent, of the area figures as wood 
or forest, and several of the provinces cannot boast a single 
tree outside a private garden. The estabHshment of orchards 
promotes fruit cultivation, which is a new and very increasing 
industry in Holland, and at the same time it adds to the 
wooded area of the country. The Government lends its aid 
to those who work on a systematic basis. 

Although it is usual to regard Holland as a country where 
far more land is given up to pasturage than to cultivation, 
there are four out of the eleven provinces in which the arable 
area exceeds that under grass. These are Nord Brabant, 
Groningen, Zeeland, and Limburg, and for the whole kingdom 
the proportion of arable to pasture is no more than as 41*7 
to 58*3. The provinces in which orchards most abound are 
Gueldres, South Holland, and Limburg. Market gardens are 
found mainly in the two Hollands, Gueldres, and Nord Bra- 
bant. Gueldres and Brabant have considerably more than 
half the wood in the country between them. 

Land is worked by either the proprietors (Eigenaars) or 
farmers (Pachters). The former are interested in 55*3 per cent, 
of the cultivated land and the latter in 44*7 
Systems. P^^ cent. The proportion of actual proprie- 
tors is highest in Groningen, where it reaches 
82 per cent., and in Overyssel where it comes next it is 69*2. 
In Zeeland and Friesland the farmers are more numerous, 
being 64-2 and 62*3 of the totals respectively. In Groningen 
there is a special tenure called beklem regt, which leaves the 
farmer in undisturbed possession so long as he pays his rent, 
with a further liability for a year's rent on each succession 
to the owner. 

The following figures give an idea of the magnitude of the 
farm stock in Holland. In 1910 there were 327,400 horses 
employed in agriculture. The stock of cattle reached a total 
of 2,026,900, of which 1,068,400 were milch cows. The 
number of sheep was 889,000, of goats 224,200, and of pigs 
1,259,800. The finest horses are of the Friesland breed. 




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Agriculture 139 

There are three recognised breeds of cattle, viz., those of 
Friesland, Groningen, and Gueldres. 

The Belgian economist, Emile de Laveleye, made a profound 
study of Dutch agriculture fifty years ago, and although the 
details have greatly altered, the information 
Farming. ■^^ suppHes is still fundamentally sound and 
accurate. The success of Dutch farming is 
based on scrupulous cleanUness, attention to sanitary condi- 
tions, and the personal control of details by the proprietor 
or farmer. In the spring and summer when the cattle are in 
the fields, the dairy becomes the family's Hving room. In 
the winter when the cattle is stalled in the big barn or pent- 
house which forms part of the farm-house, and is only separated 
from the sitting and bedrooms by a thin partition, the whole 
family hve in a kind of easy contentment amidst their live 
stock. It is said that the cattle display semi-human intelli- 
gence. They require no leading, they stall themselves, and 
they chew the cud contentedly while their toilet is being 
attended to. They are washed, combed, and Uttered with the 
close attention that is paid in England to a race-horse, and 
during the winter their tails are often tied up to a beam in 
the roof to prevent their getting soiled. Their stalls are 
cleaned out several times a day, the floor is kept carefully 
sanded, and in order to add to the effect patterns are traced and 
retraced in the sand whenever it is disturbed or disarranged. 

It may not be doubted that this care and cleanliness 

effects a double object. It makes the proximity of the cattle 

to the residence not merely possible but free 

Cows. from disagreeabiUty, and it conduces to the 

health of the animals themselves. Over 

350 veterinary surgeons are constantly engaged in examining 

for signs of tuberculosis, and all milk must be sold in sealed 

bottles bearing an ofi&cial guarantee. This State control has 

become still more severe since the last outbreak of the cattle 

plague in 1907, when 341,287 animals had to be destroyed on 

17,816 farms. 



140 Holland of the Dutch 

The average yield of milk per cow in North Holland is 
placed as high as 30 quarts a day, and the greater portion is 

set aside for conversion into cheese and butter. 
Milk. These articles are chiefly manufactured in 

special buildings or factories, called Zuivel- 
fabrieken. Although the manufacture of cheese is not res- 
tricted to a single province, it is in North Holland that it 
attains the greatest production and the most perfect quahty. 
Dutch cheeses are of two kinds. There is the round cheese 
resembhng a red ball known to commerce as Dutch, and in 
Holland itself as simply cheese. Then there is Edam, called 
especially after that place, and made in flat blocks. Both 
cheeses are excellent and although it is the fashion in foreign 
countries to treat Edam as a superior production, the market 
price of both in Holland is the same, or about 5d. a pound. 

The principal market for Edam cheese is at Purmerend, 
and other great cheese markets are held at Bodegraven, 

Gouda, Utrecht, Leyden, and Leeuwarden. 
Cheeses. The total output of cheese in Holland is valued 

at two millions sterling. That of butter 
cannot be much less, and these figures give a fair idea of the 
amount of foreign money that is brought back into Holland 
as the reward of land cultivation. It is said that the Dutch 
butter trade is feeling the effects of colonial competition, 
but the cheese is so excellent in quality that the demand for 
it is considerably greater than the supply. 

This trade explains why the Dutch agriculturist finds 
pasture more profitable than cultivation. The draining of 

the lakes round Alkmaar and their conversion 
%oWer!^ ^ ^^^^ polders became a most remunerative 

process for the capital expenditure was soon 
recovered. Some of these polders are worked in common 
by a sort of guild composed of the proprietors. For instance, 
there is the Beemster polder formed out of one of the forty- 
three lakes that used to cover so much of the Alkmaar district. 
It has a superficies of 17,500 acres, spht up into 300 farms. 



Agriculture 141 

Each farmer pays into a common fund a sum fixed at a rate 
per hectare, which meets all the Habilities of the Httle com- 
munity. Among these figure prominently the expense of 
preserving the polder from inundation, for, l5^ng as it does 
nearly 12 feet lower than the level of Amsterdam, the surplus 
water has to be persistently drawn off by the action of water- 
mills to the sea. In these polders, although there are narrow 
walks on the top of the walls between which flow the irrigation 
canals, aU traffic is carried on by boat, and the farmhouses are 
themselves surrounded by moats, which are crossed by 
drawbridges raised at nightfall. As it is impossible for the 
cattle to get outside of the polder, and as all the polders are 
bound together by common interest, there is no attempt at 
herding, and the cattle are left to roam and pasture at will. 

Reference to the polders suggests the question of the storks 

who are given free lodgment in them for the services they 

render in keeping down the multitudes of 

The Storks, frogs and toads. The stork is a friendly 
bird, and he is essentially the bird of Holland. 
If there are no storks in a polder every inducement is held 
out to them to come by the erection of posts which form the 
support for storks' nests. These posts, crowned by their 
little bundles of sticks and wattle cunningly knit together, 
form the only breaks in the monotony of the view presented 
by the polders. Formerly storks were more numerous 
than they are now, and no Dutch city was without its own pet 
colony. The tragedy of the stork colony at Delft is one of 
the classics of Dutch folk-lore. It occurred in the fifteenth 
century, and during the breeding season. The town caught 
fire and the wooden houses burnt rapidly. The storks, hke 
the inhabitants, made preparation for flight, but their offspring 
were too young for flight and too heavy to carry. The old 
birds could only save their own fives by abandoning their 
young. They refused, returning to their nests, and all 
perished together. 

Reference was made in an earlier passage of this chapter 



142 Holland of the Dutch 

to the form of tenure known as beklem-regt. This system is 
only found in Groningen, where it has existed for many cen- 
turies. It is beUeved to have originated in the agreements 
made between the abbeys and convents on one side, and the 
farmers on the other, who worked the church lands. The 
latter asked for some security of tenure in return for giving 
their best efforts to the improvement of the land. The farmer 
paid a quit rent, and in return got a deed guaranteeing him 
against dispossession so long as he paid it. But he got in the 
course of time something more than this. He obtained the 
privilege of passing on his right to his heir, provided the latter 
paid an additional year's rent as a kind of succession duty. 
In the course of centuries this tenure has developed into one 
of almost absolute possession, and it is only very rarely that 
land held on these terms comes into the market. 

Such cases arise through the failure of the holder, not in 
agriculture, but by bad investments in other directions. 

The sale includes not only the farm but the 
Farms. improvements on it in respect of buildings 

and farm implements. The price paid for 
the latter goes to help the seller and his family, or to liquidate 
their debts. The acquirer of the farm must be able to show 
that he is in a position to discharge all the obHgations that 
its possession wiU entail towards the State, the Commune, 
and himself. Of late years things have not gone so very well 
with the farmers, and forced sales have been more frequent. 
There has also been a difficulty in hiring labour owing to the 
higher pay in industrial employment and also to the attrac- 
tions of Belgium and Germany, where in good seasons labour 
is deficient. For these reasons inducements are being held 
out to the farm-labouring class to remain at home, and a 
system of allotments has been introduced which may develop. 
But when we remember that the farm labourer rarely earns 
more than 9s. a week with a house, it is pretty clear that 
wages will have to go up considerably if he is to be kept at 
home. 



Agriculture 143 

There is no great social distinction between the farmer and 
the agricultural class in general. Both are Boeren, both use 

the wooden shoe or klompen for work in the 
Class. fields, and both never trouble themselves 

about anything except their land until 
Saturday evening approaches. Then they go to their village 
or the neighbouring townlet, where they have their weekly 
shave and their weekly gossip. This takes place in the Raad 
or weekly assembly, which sometimes meets in the store, but 
more usually in the inn, which of late years has attracted the 
majority by the provision of a billiard table. These discus- 
sions are the event of the week, and cover a wide range of 
poUtics and religious topics, as well as the affairs of the 
locaUty. Perhaps it is because the last named are so dull 
that the poUtics are so discursive, and this is particu- 
larly the case in the North, where Dutch character is much 
more free and outspoken. There also the difference 
between proprietor and farmer is very sHght, and the 
class of farm labourer as understood in England does not 
exist. 

The homestead in Groningen and Frisia provides accom- 
modation from the Dutch point of view for a very considerable 

family. It is not the practice to provide 
Arrangements, separate bedrooms. The beds are placed in 

receptacles, cupboards, and even a kind of 
ingenious sliding drawer round the sitting-room, which is 
generally kitchen and dining-room in one. The receptacles 
are curtained off, the lockers and cupboards are practically 
invisible, and if a stranger could suddenly enter the dwelling 
at night and take up his place at the hearth he would never 
imagine that perhaps twenty people quite concealed from view 
were sleeping around him. There is always a state or spare 
bedroom which is never used, but ever kept in careful readi- 
ness for the honoured guest who never arrives. Sometimes 
the room itself does not exist, but in that case there will be 
a becurtained and belaced bed in the sitting-room which 



144 Holland of the Dutch 

answers the same purpose, and is guarded as a monument of 
the family's respectabiHty. 

At the weekly Raad the Boer smokes his long Gouda pipe, 
and enjoys his glass or two of Schiedam, or whatever may be 
his favourite form of gin, while the more 
The Raad. eloquent discuss and decide the affairs of the 
country. The clergyman, the doctor, and the 
schoolmaster are also present, and are supposed to give a 
slightly higher tone to the discourse. Moreover, a certain 
amount of local business is transacted, for the Raad is the 
meeting-place of the gemeente, which is ruled by the Burgo- 
master and a small council, generally called " the leden van 
den Raad.'* All this serves to make the weekly Raad of 
greater interest, and those who take part in it may be excused 
if, like members of more famous assembhes, they imagine 
themselves to be persons of importance. 

The Dutch are enormous smokers, and pipes or cigars are 
rarely out of their mouths. An immense quantity of tobacco 
is imported from Sumatra, and cigars of home manufacture 
are excellent and cheap. Children are allowed to smoke 
almost as soon as they can light a piece of paper, and the youth 
are encouraged to smoke in the presence of their fathers. 
There is nothing shamefaced about it, but, on the other hand, 
this indispensable practice for the masculine gender has 
produced no imitativeness in the other sex. Dutch ladies 
do not smoke. 

Mention of smoking in Holland recalls the story of the 
famous Van Klaes of Rotterdam. Van Klaes made a fortune 
in the Indies, and on his return he built a fine 
Tobacco. mansion in his native town and proceeded to 
turn it into a museum of pipes. His collec- 
tion of pipes contained many specimens of the instruments 
for burning hemp or weeds used by primitive man long before 
the discovery of tobacco. He received many visitors to see 
his curios, and they were not made any the less numerous 
by the fact that it was notorious that he never allowed them 




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Agriculture 145 

to depart without a certain number of his very excellent 
cigars in their pockets. 

Van Klaes smoked about half a pound of tobacco every day, 
and to save himself trouble he used a particularly large pipe, 
which gained him the nickname of Father Great Pipe. The 
doctors could not declare that there was anything very inju- 
rious in the habit, for the man Hved to be ninety-eight, and 
almost the last act recorded of him is that he Ht his pipe to 
make his will — the only one in the world's history for the 
benefit of smokers. 

The document began by inviting all smokers in the country 
to his funeral. Each person who attended was to receive 
10 lbs. of tobacco and two pipes bearing the name of the donor, 
his arms and the date of his death, but he imposed the con- 
dition that they were to smoke without interruption during 
the funeral ceremony. Even his cook, for whom he provided, 
was obUged for this occasion to forego her aversion to smoke, 
and to join the procession smoking under penalty of forfeiting 
her legacy. Finally, his coffin was to be lined with the wood 
of his old cigar boxes, and beside him were to be placed his 
favourite pipe, a supply of tobacco, and a box of matches for, 
as the will sententiously sets forth, no one knows what may 
happen. The story of Van Klaes appeals to every Dutchman, 
for smoking is the ruhng passion, and the Raad meetings 
would be less popular and attended if pipes had to be left 
at the door. 

There is another weekly meeting-place as regularly fre- 
quented as the Raad, and not by one sex alone. This is the 
church or kirk. Going to church is a very 

Church-going, serious business in Holland, and whatever 
may be the sect all the members of it attend. 
The women dress in their best, the men put on black coats and 
coloured ties, and every one is prepared to pass between 
two and three hours in the church. The schoolmaster reads 
a long lesson, there is a good deal of psalm-singing, but the 
serious part is the pastor's sermon, which never lasts less than 

10 — (2390) 



146 Holland of the Dutch 

an hour and a half in delivery. There is an interruption half 
way through his discourse for a collection, and at that moment, 
as the stir in the church shows, most of the women are asleep. 
But the men take great pride in hearing the sermon through, 
and the more discursive the preacher makes it, the more will 
it be to their taste. Perhaps this explains why so many 
Dutch preachers have become popular journalists. 

After the church is over the congregations return to their 
dinners, and Sunday afternoons are marked by the drinking 
of cordials, generally brandy with sugar, and the eating of 
sweet cakes. It is a general day of relaxation from the labours 
of the week. The agricultural class keep entirely to them- 
selves, and have rather a contempt for those whose work is 
of a different nature. Manual labour, and not book know- 
ledge, is the test of a man, and even their own village school- 
master, the chief embodiment of book learning within their 
horizon, is rather looked down upon as a useless person. 
Whether the new education law will bring about a change 
in this respect remains to be proved. 

There is another branch of agriculture in Holland which 
has been raised to the level of a fine art. This is gardening 
and tulip-growing. About 12,500 acres are 
Cultivation, specially devoted to the cultivation of bulbs 
of all kinds (oignons d fleur or bloem-bollen) , 
and Haarlem is the centre, visited by the bulb buyers of all 
the world. It was in the sixteenth century only that the 
tulip was introduced into Europe from Western Asia, and the 
mania for developing new species of fantastic colours from 
the original bulbs seized the Dutch people. GambUng in 
tuhps became a form of popular amusement. Fabulous 
prices were paid for rare bulbs. As much as a thousand 
pounds was paid for one specimen, the last of its genus. Cor- 
ners were formed in the bulbs, and at last the State had to 
intervene to put an end to what had become a pubUc scandal. 

But although gambhng over tulips was stopped, their culti- 
vation in a natural and reasonable manner has continued 



Agriculture 147 

unabated. To the cultivation of tulips has been added that 
of many other plants Hke hyacinths, carnations, cameHcLS, 
etc., so that Haarlem appears to the visitor in the spring Hke 
a city surrounded by a flower garden. There is an enormous 
export not merely to England but to South America, and the 
gardeners of Holland are among the most prosperous class 
drawing their hvelihood or their profit from the land. 

Zeeland, which has neither gardens nor orchards, is in some 
respects the most remarkably developed of all the provinces. 
It is, in the first place, the one that has been 
Coimtry entirely rescued from the sea. All its compo- 
nent islands have to be defended on all sides 
against the encroachments of the sea and river floods. The 
whole of the land is below sea-leveL Nowhere else are the 
water wheels more powerful or more constantly at work. 
Admitting the boldness and courage of the Netherlanders, 
no one would assume that they would have thought of turning 
such a submerged and reclaimed land to any other purpose 
than one of pasturage. But Zeeland was the inner fortress 
of the Netherlands against Spain, and as man does not Uve 
on grass it was to the cultivation of wheat and grain that the 
Zeelander turned his attention. Laveleye has written : 
" In point of agriculture Zeeland is the richest province 
in the Low Countries. The soil is one of wonderful fertihty. 
Grain, flax, colza, and madder grow as in few other places. 
There are fine large cattle and colossal horses. The people are 
strong and weU made, preserving their ancient customs and 
living contented in their prosperity and peace. Zeeland is 
a hidden paradise." Of late years Groningen has worked its 
way up to the second place, but Zeeland is still the home of the 
golden grain in Holland. 

In Friesland, the land of the Free Frisians, farming is car- 
ried on on more scientific principles than is 
Frisia. general in other parts of Holland. The stock 

seems to be apportioned to the size of the 
farm. One milch cow is counted per hectare, two beef 



148 Holland of the Dutch 

cattle for the same area. No farm will be without a certain 
number of sheep, whose milk is used in preparing a special 
cheese. The number of horses is also in proportion. An 
average holding is one of about 100 acres, and the Frisian 
farmer is generally a small capitaUst as well. Fortunes of 
seven or eight thousand pounds are common and the Frisian 
farmer who had not half that sum would be esteemed quite 
poor. As a consequence of the possession of private means, 
the Frisian farmer is the best educated man of his class, and 
it is not uncommon to find among them men who have attended 
one of the Universities. 





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CHAPTER XVI 

RELIGION AND THE CHURCHES 

Considering the part taken by Holland in establishing 

Protestantism in Europe, and the long period during which 

the Church of Rome was forbidden admission 

Tokration. ^^^^ ^^® country, the present state of religious 

toleration and equality among the churches 

must appear a strange anomaly and a striking instance of the 

" whirligig of time bringing its own revenges/' Many good 

Dutchmen bitterly regret the disappearance of the State 

Church and of the old law against the Papacy ; but it has 

to be remembered that modern Holland contains two Catholic 

provinces which formerly belonged to the Austrian or Belgic 

Netherlands. Those provinces could not very well have 

been taken over if their inhabitants were not to be allowed 

to practise their own religion. 

But as a matter of fact, it was the French Revolution 
which destroyed the old estabHshed Church and opened the 
door to religious toleration. The Batavian Republic, the 
ally of France, adopted the tenets and principles of the Paris 
Convention, which either abolished religion altogether or 
left it to each man's own choice. We may assume that the 
Dutch decided for religious equality and toleration on the 
latter ground. 

When the Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed there 
was a still more potent reason for not reviving the National 
Church and earlier State policy towards the Church of Rome, 
in the fact that more than half the subjects of the newly- 
formed kingdom, which comprised Belgium as well as Hol- 
land, were Roman Catholics. After the scission between the 
two countries in 1830-31, there remained the inhabitants of 
North Brabant, Limburg, and part of Gueldres as a solid 

149 



150 Holland of the Dutch 

block of Catholic fellow-subjects. The uniformity aimed at 
in the sixteenth century could not then be sustained in the 
nineteenth. 

But there was another and a deeper cause for the pre- 
valence of tolerance and moderation. The old National 
Church no longer held undisputed possession 

The Old Qf ^j^g field. Schisms and splits had divided 

NsuonAl 

Church. the Protestants into several factions, and 

this had been going on more or less ever 

since the dawn of the seventeenth century, when the 

Arminians and Gomarists waged war over what the former 

called their " five articles." 

Independence of opinion even among the most ardent 
Calvinists is, therefore, of old date, and in the Holland of 
to-day there are several distinct Churches or sects even 
among the Protestants. There is, first of all, " the Reformed 
Church," which is the successor, as it were, of the old State 
Church prior to 1795. Its members pose as the orthodox, 
and in numbers they far exceed all the other Protestants 
combined. The administration of this Church, officially 
designated " Hervormde," is carried on by one General and 
ten Provincial Synods. 

The " Modem Church," which is a sort of cave in the body 

of the Hervormde community, came into prominence about 

the year 1850 as an attempt to reconcile the 

The Modems, old religious tenets with modem science. 
Its members are Unitarian, and have had 
some brilliant leaders, like Scholter and Opzoomer. In most 
communities this movement would never have assumed any 
other form than a controversial discussion between rival 
professors ; but in HoUand it was quite natural for the 
movement to begin where in other countries it would have 
ended — ^\ith the founding of a Church. 

The Modems call themselves the Netherlands Protestant 
League, to distinguish themselves from the Reformed Church, 
which is essentially orthodox and Calvinistic, and they have 



Religion and the Churches 151 

a good many meeting-houses and schools scattered over the 
country. Their congregations are to be found chiefly in 
towns Hke Amsterdam, Utrecht, and Ley den, but they do 
not seem to have acquired any hold on the rural population. 

The aggressiveness of the " Moderns" led to the drawing 
apart of those who were resolved in upholding the Bible as 
an unalterable canon, and for many years 
^^^ ChuJch!^^"* two bodies, entitled the Afgescheidenen Church 
and the " Christ elyk Gereformeerden," worked 
on separatist lines, on the ground that those who tolerated 
any deviation from orthodoxy were as bad as the unorthodox. 
These two bodies, or the bulk of them, were amalgamated in 
1892 under the style of the Independent or Gereformeerden 
Churches. In politics, they are the anti-revolutionaries. 
Dr. Abraham Kuyper has been their leader and president 
from the beginning of the movement, and it was with the 
idea of maintaining stricter theology that he founded the 
New University at Amsterdam. The Nieuwe Kerk at 
Amsterdam is the headquarters of this body, which had a 
following of 491,450 persons in 1910. Formerly the State 
exercised a slight control over the appointment of its pastors 
and teachers ; but, thanks mainly to Dr Kuyper, this was 
abolished in 1872. The Gereformeerden body is more aggres- 
sively propagandist than the Hervormden, and embraces 
politics and religion in its programme. 

These two principal Churches, although they contain 
eleven-twelfths of the Protestants, are far from exhausting 
the number of Protestant sects in the country. The 
Lutherans have their churches, as weU as those who look 
more or less to Calvin, and (like them) they have split into 
two bodies, viz., the Evangelical and the Modern Lutherans. 
The former number 81,833 followers, while the latter, who 
are more particularly known as the Herstites, have no more 
than 15,867. 

In the next place we come to the Mennonites, who are 
called by some authorities Baptists, and by others Quakers. 



152 Holland of the Dutch 

They maintain no regular clergy, but are ruled by the elder of 

each community. They are one of the oldest bodies in 

Holland, going back to a time prior to 

Mennonites. *^^ suppression of Spanish authority. Their 
founder, Menno Simons, flourished between 
1540 and 1560 ; and it is a remarkable tribute to the simpli- 
city and excellence of his teaching, that, despite active per- 
secution and the more deadly sap of general indifference, this 
little body has held together as a separate community for 
four centuries. Laveleye, the great Belgian economist and 
writer, has described the Mennonite settlements in Groningen. 
He expatiates on the union between the members of this 
small religious body, who help one another in times of stress 
and trouble, so that there are never any poor to be found 
among them. Their community numbers 64,245 persons, 
but its steady increase is due not to proselytism, but solely 
to the normal growth of the population. 

Last among the Protestant sects come the Remonstrants, 

who are the modern representatives of the Arminians. They 

are social reformers, and believe that the 
The 
Remonstrants. *^^^ ^^ rehgion is its influence on conduct. 

They are more akin to and in sympathy with 
the Mennonites than with the regular chiu-ches, and they 
often meet together to hold discussions in what is called 
open meeting or Raads. The Remonstrants number 27,450. 
Finally, there is a very small body of 9,660 souls grouped 
under the name of the Walloon Church. This is really the 
French Reformed or Protestant Church, although it claims 
a separate and purely Belgian origin. 

But there is one remarkable feature in the Protestant 
religious life of Holland. There is no active strife or enmity 
between the different sects. At the worst, 
° Stxife.*^**" ^^^^ relations are only formal and unsym- 
pathetic. They can live side by side with- 
out longing to do one another a mortal injury. But there is 
another view of the picture, and it may be doubted whether 




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Religion and the Churches 153 

this religious equanimity is not symptomatic of the some- 
what lethargic public spirit which colours the whole of Dutch 
life. No one who knows them can doubt that the Dutch 
are a most admirable people, that their national life attains 
a high moral and material standard ; yet it may be ques- 
tioned whether the pubUc spirit of the nation burns with 
the virile force of yore. The somewhat easy-going views 
about creeds now prevalent are, at least, in striking variance 
with the old anathema : " Sooner Turks than Papists " ; 
and religion, whether it be merely a formality or a reality, 
provides one of the surest means of judging the condition 
of a country. 

Although the Church of Rome is a united Church in a 
sense that does not apply to any other body in Christendom, 
Holland, faithful to its reputation for recep- 
Catholics. tivity of new ideas, does contain representa- 
tives of the only two schisms that have dis- 
turbed the calm of the Papacy since the Reformation. In 
Holland we find the Church of Rome, as properly under- 
stood, with a large proportion of the population — ^two-fifths 
— in its fold, and the influence it exercises is very consider- 
able in the political and social world. But, at the same 
time, we find representatives of the Jansenist schism, and 
of the old Catholics Uving their own separate lives quite 
peaceably in the midst of a community which regards their 
heresies and defiance of authority with a kind of tolerant 
indifference. 

The Roman Church in Holland is under the direction 
of a hierarchy composed of an Archbishop of Utrecht and 
Bishops of Haarlem, S'Hertogenbosch, Breda, and Roermond. 

The total number of Catholics, speaking of the recognised 
members of the Church, is 2,053,021. They have increased 
by 745,256 since 1869, whereas the Dutch Church has only 
gained 631,409 in the same period. On the other hand, we 
must remember that the Reformed Churches, which did not 
exist in 1869, have now 491 .451 members. A fairer comparison 



154 Holland of the Dutch 

may be instituted by the fact that in 1869, when 
the population was 3,579,529, there were 2,192,013 Pro- 
testants altogether and 1,307,765 Catholics ; and in 1909, 
with a total population of 5,858,175, there were 3,334,487 
Protestants and 2,053,021 Catholics. These figures show an 
increase of 52*15 for the Protestants (grouped together) and 
of 56*98 for the Catholics (excluding the unorthodox) It is 
not true to say, as many English writers have said, that the 
Church of Rome is losing ground in Holland. With the 
development of Nord Brabant and Limburg, it is hkely to 
expand. 

The Jansenist Church is an old body, which has existed 
on Dutch soil for the greater part of three centuries. 
Perhaps Dutch hospitality was originally 
Jansenists. extended to it all the more readily because 
the movement was anti- Jesuit and came 
under the special condemnation of Louis XIV. Jansenius 
himself had died, in 1638, as Bishop of Ypres, before the 
formal separation and expulsion of his followers from the 
Church occurred. Of his successors, Pascal was the most 
famous ; and it was probably the force and brilhance of 
that great thinker's reflections and of the influence of the 
famous school or coterie of Port Royal that brought down 
on the sect the persecution of the French Court and Govern- 
ment. Finally, the Jansenists were expelled from France in 
1713 as the consequence of the famous Bull of Pope 
Clement XI, entitled " Unigenitus." They joined the Dutch 
members of the church who had drawn together under the 
name of pupils of St. Augustin at Utrecht, Haarlem, and 
Deventer, but principally at the first-named place, which is 
their present headquarters. 

The Jansenist Archbishop of Utrecht is the official head 
of the Church ; and as they still claim to be orthodox 
Catholics, his appointment on each succession is duly noti- 
fied at Rome, to which notification for a long time past no 
reply has been vouchsafed. Under the Archbishop are 



Religion and the Churches 155 

bishops at Haarlem and Deventer, The Jansenist survival 
is a curious instance of the tenacity with which men can 
cling to an opinion, for the main point with the sect is the 
freedom of grace. 

The Old CathoHcs are less numerous than the Jansenists 
and have a more recent origin, dating only from the Kulter- 
kampf movement under Dr. DoUinguer against the Infalli- 
bility dogma. They have no hierarchy, and the Dutch 
treat them as forming one community with the Jansenists. 
Their total together is no more than 10,082, which seems a 
small body to be ruled by an Archbishop and two Bishops. 

A few words may now be said about the non-Christian com- 
munities, of whom the Jewish is naturally the most important. 

The Jews were the only section of the community whose 
views and prejudices were not taken into account by the 
framers of the nineteenth century constitu- 
The Jews. tion, and for many years they had to carry 
on their rites in secrecy. Amsterdam con- 
tains the bulk of the Dutch Jews, and the Ghetto there is 
said to possess a population of 60,000 Jews, most of them 
living in extreme poverty. One of the modifications intro- 
duced into the Constitution in 1847 removed all fetters from 
the right of meeting, and under this the Jews were able to 
come together for the first time in their synagogues. It was 
then found that the Jews had forgotten much of their ritual ; 
and it was only by the aid and munificence of their wealthier 
members in other parts of Holland and abroad that the 
synagogues were properly endowed and the people brought 
back to the strict observance of the religion to which they 
had clung in name, at least, under persecution and great 
difficulties, for so many centuries. Even among the Jews 
the separatist tendency is visible. The main body form the 
Israelite congregation ; but the Portuguese Jews, who 
number many Brazihans, have their own separate synagogues 
and governing body. The total number of Jews in Holland 
is 99,785, to which may be added the Portuguese sect of 6,624. 



156 Holland of the Dutch 

One of the most surprising features in the last Census 

returns was the admission by 290,960 persons that they had 

" no rehgion at all." In 1899 the total was 

Atheists. only 115,179; and in 1879, the first year of 

an inquiry on the point, no more than 12,253. 

In conclusion, it may be stated, as the point has not been 

made clear by other writers on Holland, that the State does 

not support religion, as is the case in Belgium. The Budget 

contains no provision for the clergy or the Churches — in 

short, for les cultes in any form. But the Communes levy 

a local rate for the partial payment of the clergy of all 

creeds, and for the maintenance and preservation of the 

Churches, both in the rehgious sense and in that, also, of 

being historical and architectural monuments. 



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CHAPTER XVII 

AMUSEMENTS AND FETES 

It is quite a common criticism of Dutch school life in 
EngUsh books to regret the absence of popular games, and 

to assume that because there are none, as 
Ganws.** ^^ understand them, the schools themselves 

must be defective as educational establish- 
ments. The criticism wiU not bear examination, and is, in 
fact, rather ridiculous. In this age of fierce international 
competition, when the struggle for Hfe is becoming more 
acute through the increase of the world's population and the 
higher scale of comfort and luxury claimed as the right of 
the individual — not only in the centres of civiHsation, but 
also in what were called backward countries — schools must 
become less and less mere playgrounds and more and more 
institutions for fitting the young for the battle of life. The 
nation who trains their youth in gymnastics, drill and rifle 
practice, for their proper physical development, and for the 
efi&cient discharge of their duties as citizens, must, in the 
long run, have an immense advantage over those who 
believe that the same end can be attained by devotion to 
cricket, football, and hockey. 

Because there is not a rage for games in Holland it must 
not be assumed that the youth of the country is soft. They 
can do some forms of athletics quite as weU as any other 
people. They are most expert cyclists and skaters ; but as 
mihtary training is not yet in vogue to the same extent as 
it is in Germany and Switzerland, their acquaintance 
with rifle firing and even with gymnastics is not very 
extensive. 

157 



158 Holland of the Dutch 

Whether this will not be changed by the increase of the 

army and by the adoption of the Boy Scout movement 

remains to be seen ; but, at all events, the 

Movemen"! Padvinden ("Pathfinders"), as the Dutch 

Boy Scouts are called, are very much in 

evidence just now, and good judges pronounce them to be 

among the most efficient. 

In order to show the extent to which cycling is practised 
in HoUand, it may be mentioned that in 1910 there were 
506,704 bicycles belonging to private persons 
Cycling. who paid the licence for one apiece, and, in 
addition, there were 32,856 others belonging 
to dealers and hirers out. There were also 3,254 motor 
cycles, 1,973 automobiles, and twenty-nine electromobiles. 
Horse-riding is comparatively rare, as shown by the number 
of the horses, which is not surprising considering the 
character of the country ; but it also seems to be falling off. 
In 1910 there were only 1,938 horses in private ownership 
as compared with 2,655 in 1897. Medical men in 1897 
owned 982 horses ; but in 1910 the number had fallen to 
710, which points to the adoption of some other means of 
locomotion. The total of taxed horses in the kingdom in 
1910 was 60,906. 

After cycling, the great popular recreation of the country 
is skating ; and, in point of time, it is the ancient national 
sport, rendered famous on so many life-like 
Skating. Dutch canvases during the last three cen- 
turies. But cycling can be practised all the 
year round, whereas skating can only be indulged in when 
the lakes and canals are held in the grip of frost ; and of 
late the winters have been milder, and the old ice festivals 
on the Meuse, which used to be of regular annual occurrence, 
have now become rare. But in Friesland and Groningen 
the canals are always frozen for some part of the winter, 
and then locomotion is performed almost exclusively on 
skates. The Frisian and northerner generally has his own 




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Amusements and Fetes 159 

style of skating. It is thoroughly utilitarian and practical, 
the object being to cover distance in the shortest possible 
time. He, therefore, skates straight ahead in as nearly as 
possible to a bee Hne. Stories are told of how the Frisian 
skater can race and beat an express train, and thinks nothing 
of an afternoon excursion of a hundred miles. One of the 
estabUshed records is four miles in five minutes. 

When skating is known to be practicable, one of the first 

expeditions made is that from Utrecht to Gouda, which is 

famous for its long pipes, something like our 

Some qI^ " Churchwardens." The trip is made not 

Boisterous 1 r ^^i r ■> • J^^ - 

Play. merely for the purpose of buymg the pipes, 

but of bringing them back safely. The 
skater sometimes carries them in his mouth or stuck about 
his coat, and the " fun of the fair " hes in trying to prevent 
his getting home without having them broken by the 
roysterers who set out to waylay him. In the same way the 
women buy at Gouda a brittle cake, which they carry back 
in bags, and their opponents endeavour to knock them out 
of their hands as they skate homewards. The whole spirit 
of the thing is rather rough and boisterous, and, indeed, a 
certain roughness in the streets is one of the least pleasant 
features of Dutch life. It is not at all uncommon for a 
harmless wayfarer to be half swept ofi his feet by a man or 
woman suddenly charging him from behind in the sudden 
desire to reach — regardless of anybody else's convenience — 
some scene of commotion ahead, such as the arrest of a 
drunken man, the appearance of a fire engine, or even a 
trifling street accident. 

In the western provinces of Holland proper, figure-skating 
as a fine art is in vogue, and mere speed becomes of less con- 
sideration. The Hague, Amsterdam, and Utrecht produce 
their rival champions, and the competition between them 
is exceedingly keen. 

Skating is ruled in Holland by a national society called 
the Hollandsche Ijsvereeniging, for which the subscription 



160 Holland of the Dutch 

is so small that everyone can join it. It decides when 

skating is possible, marks out the routes over the ice, 

employs a corps of sweepers to keep the 

^^Sk^t'^°"^^ tracks clear of snow, and issues rules which 

Society. every one obeys. It also directs and awards 

prizes for the ice competitions and races that 

excite the same enthusiasm in Holland that a great cricket match 

or boat race does in England. There is one striking thing 

about skating in Holland, and that is the remarkable rarity 

of serious accidents. This may be due to Dutch caution ; 

but perhaps the extreme care shown by the Society named 

in marking off rotten ice and in placing scouts to warn away 

skaters, has as much to do with the result. 

Occasionally the Zuyder Zee is frozen over, and then 

excursions are made to Marken, the islet where the people 

retain the primitive manners and the pic- 

Scenes^^ turesque costumes of centuries ago, at a 

time when it was still part of the mainland. 

But this is a rare event, and has latterly become rarer. 

When it does happen, however, the most exciting scene on 

the Zuyder Zee is the fleet of small boats which, with sails 

set, are rapidly carried over the surface of the frozen sea by 

the force of the wind. Leyden and the Gelgenwater is 

another favourite rendezvous. There is a straight course 

here for races, as weU as an open space for figure-skating, 

and many of the most exciting displays have been held on 

this branch of the old Rhine. Sleighing is also indulged in, 

more especially by the fashionable world of The Hague. 

Of late years there has been an increasing tendency to 
found Ijs clubs. Two separate motives are at the root of 
this movement ; one is the desire of the 
Ice Clubs. well-to-do for greater privacy in their amuse- 
ments, but the other cause is of greater 
importance. The winters have become so mild, that the 
canals are rarely frost-bound, and the rivers practically never. 
But a comparatively slight frost will suffice to make flooded 



Amusements and Fetes 161 

meadows or a shallow pond a good skating ground. Hence 
arose the Ijs Club, the rendezvous of the fashionable world 
at places like Arnhem and Breda ; but, owing to the popu- 
larity of the pastime, no club is without its rink of artificial 
ice, and so the sport is carried on all the year round. 

Boating is also in vogue, more especially at Amsterdam, 

where there is a first-rate club formed on the Hues of the 

Thames Rowing Club. It has produced 

Boating. some very good rowing men, and sent teams 

to Henley and other international regattas. 

But boating is entirely in the second rank as compared 

with skating and cycling, and has a very limited following. 

Leyden University and Leyden Gymnasia have each a 
regular cricket and football club. The fact deserves notice 
from its exceptional character. 

But it is when we turn to the popular fetes that we get a 
glimpse behind "the impassive countenance of the Nether- 
lander into his soul. The visitor to Holland 
F6test^ will often feel oppressed by the sameness and 
dulness of the life and, wondering how men 
and women can endure the monotony from year to year, will 
ask some Dutch friend the question : " But have not the 
people any amusement ? '* No matter to what class his 
informant may belong, his reply, with an unwonted air of 
vivacity, will be : " There is the Kermis " ; and the meaning 
he wishes to convey is that that week's outburst is ample 
compensation for the other fifty-one weeks of sober, quiet 
life. 

The Kermis (or Kermesse in Belgium) is the popular fete 

— half religious, half commercicJ, in its origin — ^that was 

celebrated during the early Middle Ages in 

The Kermis, the market-place which always adjoined the 

church. The market-place nestled under the 

church for the protection of the only Peace agency in those 

warlike times, and the Church — tolerant of human weakness 

— ^gave its sanction to the feasting and rejoicing that seemed 

II— (2390) 



162 HoUand of the Dutch 

natural when the harvest had been gathered in and the chief 
market of the year had witnessed its disposal. 

In the course of centuries the religious aspect has dis- 
appeared, but the kermis still survives, as a popular festival, 
the one amusement of the Netherlander, in which he shows 
a reckless disregard of economy, propriety, and even decency. 
The tolerant Dutch critic says, in extenuation of the popular 
orgy : " It is only once a year, and it only lasts a week." 
But the Dutch reformer demands its abolition, and already 
" kermis " has disappeared from the life of many cities. 
At The Hague, for instance, where the Court used to take 
part in the festivities by paying regular afternoon visits to 
the fair, it has long been abolished ; but at Rotterdam, 
Delft, Nijmegen, Maestricht, and the large majority of pro- 
vincial towns, kermis is still the great annual event — a kind 
of Saturnalia passed down to this twentieth century. 

There is no regular fixed date for the kermis. It is cele- 
brated in different places at different times, but care is taken 
to avoid clashing. The owners of the booths 
DuratSn ^^^ roundabouts can make their arrange- 
ments so that they may proceed to each 
kermis in due rotation. But the season for the kermis is 
the summer. Some places have it as early as June, others 
in September ; but before the schools re-open in October, 
kermis is finished everywhere till the following year. There 
is another uniform point about it : kermis lasts for eight 
days, but not an hour longer. 

Formerly, kermis was quite independent of all control, 
and no official authorisation was required for its celebration. 
But for a good many years past the muni- 
Licences, cipalities have intervened and imposed the 
restriction of their licence. For this, natur- 
ally, the promoters of the shows have to pay, and the sums 
paid are far more considerable than would be supposed. An 
idea of what they are may be formed from the following fact. 
One of the most popular centres of attraction in the fair 



Amusements and Fetes 163 

are the roundabouts. There are roundabouts in the open 
for the masses, where the charge begins at a cent. There is 
another roundabout for the elite, where the charge begins at 
25 cents or a quarter florin. This is shut in and surrounded 
with a wooden hoarding, which is plentifully ornamented 
with tinsel paper and mirrors. It is also brilliantly lit up 
at nights, for the fun goes on until long after midnight. So 
popular is the amusement with the young people, that they 
will spend hours together in doing nothing else than patron- 
ising the roundabouts. Their owners, knowing this passion, 
issue a comprehensive ticket for the week at 8 florins, or 
13s. 4d. of our money, and nearly all those who use the 
gilded hall take this pass. 

The reader will be able to judge the extent to which this 
practice is carried and the multitude that must have recourse 

to them, when it is stated that at Nijmegen 
Municipalities. *^^ proprietor of the roundabouts alone pays 

to the municipality the sum of 100,000 florins 
(over £8,000) for the right to erect them. How this is pos- 
sible may be inferred from the fact that the whole community 
is saving up for the kermis during the rest of the year, that 
the young people of the middle class and well-to-do families 
expect a very handsome sum to be given them to spend 
during the week, and that a young lady who gets only 
25 florins (£2) from her parents will think them rather 
stingy. 

But these are the amusements of the upper classes, prac- 
tised to a certain extent under cover or in a reserved 

enclosure, and it is not at Nijmegen that one 
^^^K^^^s."^^"" sees the fuU riot of the kermis. For that 

it is necessary to go to Rotterdam. Here 
the kermis is exclusively for the mass. There is the usual 
fair, with its booths, theatres, roundabouts, swings, exhibi- 
tions of Nature's freaks, drinking bars, and cake shops ; but 
there is no reserved enclosure. It would not be safe, the 
mob would sweep it to the ground. Therefore, at Rotterdam, 



164 HoUand of the Dutch 

the respectable class keeps away from the kermis and, if 
possible, at home, for during a week the city is in the hands 
of a wad mob of both sexes, excited by drink and by the 
repudiation of a year's restraint. 

The domestic ser^'ants leave their service to take part in 
the kermis. WTien they are tired out they come back for 
a rest ; but as soon as they have shaken off their weariness, 
they sally forth again, and no mistress dares to restrain them. 
If they do not return at night, that must be forgiven them 
on the ground that it is '* kermis time.'* The philosophical 
mistress can only take solace in the reflection that the ordeal 
ends with the week. 

If it were asked, " How do these people amuse them- 
selves ? " or, to put it in other words, " In what lies the 
attraction of the kermis ? " it would be rather hard to reply. 

The amusements of the fair soon satisfy the Wsitors or 

empty their pockets ; but there seems to be an endless 

attraction in dancing through the streets 

^Song ^ in a line, singing the popular song, 

" Hos ! Hos ! " which a French ^^Titer has 

rendered as foUoxs's — 

" Hossentent, hossentent ! 
Ainsi nous roulons vers Bruges, 
Ainsi nous roulons vers Gand. 
De Gand a Nieuport, vers Xieuport, ho ! 
Roulons nous vers Wiele\N-ale, Wielewale ho ! 
O ! mon cher petit coeur ! J'ai le mien qui me toume ; 
C'est la suite de tous ces sauts par dessus ces grandes gouttes 
Hos ! Hos ! Hos ! " 

The dancers are al^vays either partially or completely drunk, 

and compel every one they meet to dance with them. If the 

unlucky person shoN\*s resistance, he is encircled, hustled, 

and kept mo\'ing for an hour or so by his tormentors, who 

are delighted at being provided with a piece of amusement 

gratuitously. The mob are no respecters of persons. Not 

so many years ago, the Burgomaster of Rotterdam was 

molested in this wzy, and although he took it in good part, 

he was obliged to dance tmtil he fell do\\*n from exhaustion. 



Amusements and Fetes 165 

In some cities this incident would have been sufficient to 
put an end to kermis ; but in Rotterdam it not merely finds 
its strongest citadel, but the arm of the law 
OrS^ ^^ there is at its weakest. This great city and 
port of nearly half a million people has only 
a few hundred soldiers as a garrison, and not as many police- 
men. In kermis week the crowd are left to do as they like ; 
and the authorities are thankful if the people have done 
nothing worse than to exhaust themselves by shouting and 
dancing, and getting drunk with " ces grandes Gouttes " of 
gin, rum, and brandy. 

There are many critics of this somewhat degrading exhibi- 
tion who consider that drink really saves the situation from 
some of its worst features. Notwithstanding the general 
repudiation of all restraint, and a coarseness in the attitude 
of the two sexes towards one another not to be found in any 
other country, vice in the ordinary sense of the term is not 
a marked feature of the pandemonium. The goal before 
man and woman seems to be to reach the culminating stage 
of hopeless and helpless drunkenness. 

It is not surprising that respectable Dutchmen are 
beginning to see that the licence of the kermis is something 
of the nature of a national scandal. The 
Talk of steps already taken have somewhat dim- 
inished its worst features, except in Rotter- 
dam and one or two other places, and the rumours of a 
drastic reform are in the air ; but things move slowly in 
Holland, and public opinion is swayed by respect for custom 
and tradition more than by anything else. Perhaps the 
spreading of education and the adoption of a more general 
military service may bring the public round to the view 
that the riotous side of the kermis is out of date. No 
sweeping measure of reform is likely to be adopted, however, 
until the authorities feel that they have sufficient force 
behind them to end the kermis at Rotterdam without causing 
an insurrection. 



166 Holland of the Dutch 

The kermis has been compared to the Carnival, but the 
comparison is scarcely fair to the latter. This can be judged 
by anyone who sees the kermis at Rotterdam 
and the carnival at Maestricht. The carnival 
is as quiet, tame, and orderly as the kermis is the opposite. 
It occupies three daj's, separated from each other by an 
interval of three weeks. It is more or less subject to the 
control of the Church. The participants amuse themselves 
by singing and dancing. They do not molest strangers, and 
they do not to any visible extent get drunk. The attitude 
of Dutch Protestants towards the carnival is curious. They 
do not take part in it because it is looked upon as a relic of 
Catholic supremacy, but they do not interfere with it because 
it is upheld by a large section of their fellow-subjects. Their 
attitude may be described as one of studied indifference. 

There is another popular fete which deserves brief notice. 
This is the children's fete of St. Nicholas (St. Niklaas), cele- 
brated on 5th December. It is not exclu- 

St. Nicholas, sively a children's fete, for presents are sent 
among grown-up people as well, but always 
under a thinly veiled anonymity. 

St. Nicholas was the Bishop of Lycia, who rewarded good 

children and punished bad, and who was chosen as the 

patron saint of Amsterdam in the Middle 

^msterdam^^ Ages. For centuries, Dutch children have 
been brought up in the belief that he makes 
his appearance on his anniversary and places toys in their 
shoes. In Amsterdam, the Bishop, got up in an imposing 
costume, rides through the streets mounted on a white pony, 
and followed by his black servant, armed with a birch rod, 
driving a cart loaded with toys and packages. He is loudly 
cheered by the assembled groups of expectant children, and 
in every household the arrival of the porters from the shops, 
as the good Bishop's delegates, is eagerly awaited. 

St. Nicholas was famous for doing good deeds in the dark, 
and not letting those who benefited by them know whence 



Amusements and Fetes 167 

they came ; this tradition explains his visit being in the 
evening. As for the black servant and the birch rod — 
although it is recorded that he once thrashed an insub- 
ordinate priest who refused to play his music, their presence 
is probably intended only as a warning, for there is no 
established case on record of a child being bad enough to 
be passed over by St. Nicholas. 

St. Nicholas' Day, as has been said, is not only for the 
young. It is the occasion for the distribution of presents 

among relations and friends, but there is one 
Giving indispensable condition, the sender must 

employ all his ingenuity in concealing his 
identity. Disguised hand\vriting and fantastic letters are 
resorted to for the purpose. The humorous side of the 
Dutch character comes out in the preparation of subtle 
devices for the occasion. The present will sometimes be 
folded up in a dozen wraps, each bearing the name of a 
different member of the same family, and it is passed from 
hand to hand as each superscription is reached. Another 
joke is to send a very small article in a very large parcel, 
such as a penknife in a bandbox. St. Nicholas' Day corre- 
sponds, practically speaking, with our Twelfth Night, if its 
observance may still be considered in vogue, and it has some 
resemblance to All Fools' Day as well. 



CHAPTER XVIII 

COSTUMES AND WEDDINGS 

One of the old attractions for the visitor to Holland was the 
picturesque and mediaeval costumes worn in some of the 
provinces. A Dutchman can name his fellow-countryman's 
province by his accent or dialect. The foreigner had an 
easier way of deciding by the size of the cap, the position of 
the earring, or the presence of the silver and golden bands 
which suggest the wearing of a helmet. It is true that these 
ornaments are not in such common use as they were formerly, 
but one cannot travel very far in any part of the country with- 
out seeing some specimens of them. What is generally true 
is that the wealthier classes have given up this practice of 
their forefathers, and although the ladies of Friesland may, 
in their intimacy and at festivals, retain the use of the golden 
helmet, they would no longer wear their national head-dress 
on their travels. 

These centres of picturesque costumes may be fixed at 
four points. There are those of Zeeland, Scheveningen, 

Marken, and Friesland. In Zeeland each 
of Costumes! separate island is said to have a distinctive 

costume, but as the difference turns on such 
a trifle as the exact placing of a brooch or a buckle it would 
not be Ukely to fix the notice of a stranger. 

The women of Zeeland wear a fine cambric or Unen cap, 
fitting tightly to the head. Part of it consists of a band 

drawn across the forehead and then turned 
WonTen. backwards to cover the ears. From the back 

two wings or veils faU in a loose fold below 
the chin. These caps are generally embroidered or contain 
a worked pattern sometimes in pink or blue, but lace is never 
employed, and as this is one of the distinctive features in 

168 




A WOMAN OF ZEELAND 



Costumes and Weddings 169 

other provinces, a Zeelander can be told at once by its absence. 
Sometimes the cap has no dependent veils, but then the 
earrings are worn in a shghtly different position to that they 
occupy with the more elaborate head-covering. With the 
veils the earrings are placed on a velvet or silk band on the 
front of the forehead. They are very elaborate and include 
golden balls attached to the spiral corkscrew-Hke frame of the 
ring. When the veils are not worn the earrings are attached 
to the side, of the cap on a level with the eyebrows. The 
rings are never worn in the ears themselves, which are 
seemingly never pierced. 

There has been much speculation as to the origin of these 
so-called earrings, which are more correctly face ornaments. 
As they stand out from the face, it has been represented, 
perhaps facetiously, that they were introduced to protect the 
Zeeland beauties from the impertinent advances of the Spanish 
soldiers. Another view is that they formed part of a more 
elaborate head ornament which has dropped into disuse. 

Over the cap the Zeeland woman wears in her walks abroad 
a high straw hat something Hke a Welsh woman's bonnet, and 
round which she fastens a good many ribbons or streamers. 
If she is proud of her cap she is still prouder of her chemise, 
which is always most elaborately embroidered, and promi- 
nently displayed at the neck and chest where the gown is 
always cut away for the purpose. The arms are always left 
bare to above the elbow, and the gowns are generally of some 
dark colour, blue for preference. Another characteristic 
feature is that the bodice of the dress has puffs which stand 
up above the shoulders as a sort of wing. In some instances 
these wings rise almost to the level of the head. Those who 
have them attach a large number of lockets and chains to the 
front of their bodice, which gives them a certain incongruous 
appearance. 

The male Zeelander is also rather proud of himself when 
dressed up for any special occasion. What the earrings 
are for his sisters, the buttons of his vest and the buckle 



170 Holland of the Dutch 

in his belt are for him. Their short tight -fitting jacket is 
always left open in front to display the row of silver buttons 

or coins fastening an inner vest or waistcoat, 
j^gj^^ highly embroidered in different colours. Their 

breeches — formerly only short breeches, were 
worn, but they are now disappearing before the trouser — 
are held by a broad leather belt round the waist fastened by a 
large silver buckle or ring about the size of a tea plate. These 
ornaments indicate by their size or their number the degree 
of worldly prosperity he has attained. On his head he wears 
a cap several sizes too small for it, with a leather peak and an 
embroidered band. He also rather affects a red tie. 

Scheveningen Ues on the coast just due west of The Hague, 
and there is a splendid electric tram service by two separate 

routes through the Bosch between the two 
Fishermen^." places. But Scheveningen, the fishing village, 

retains its individuality unchanged despite 
the proximity of the capital, and there is nothing in common 
and very little sympathy between the two places. Of course, 
we are speaking of old Scheveningen and not the new fashion- 
able resort which lies at its door. New Scheveningen has a 
magnificent sea-front with a sea-wall and drive over two 
miles in length, and behind it are gigantic hotels and innumer- 
able villas amid the dunes. Thither come every season for the 
sea-bathing a hundred thousand prosperous Germans and 
perhaps half as many more of different nationaUties, but for 
seven months in the year the shutters are up, the hotels 
are closed, and the parade is only used by a few hardy 
beUevers in the virtue of Charles Kingsley's " keen east 
wind." 

But whether the season be winter or summer, the fishing 
village is full of its own life, and shows no change. It Hes 
south of the other, and under the lee of a small mountain of 
sand which seems to have been piled up by the ocean out of 
pity for the special protection of the place against its own 
ravages. Here on the culminating knoll is the parish church, 



Costumes and Weddings 171 

and on a lower mound of sand has been erected a triumphal 
column to commemorate the landing of King WiUiam I, 
when he returned in November, 1813. There is a very popular 
picture in Holland engraved and chromo-hthographed by 
every known process sho\\dng the fishermen and women wel- 
coming the return of their Prince after nearly twenty years 
of exile. But for the column the scene is unchanged, and so 
also are the costumes. 

The fishermen of Scheveningen live on the herring fishery. 

At the end of May they sail away into the North Sea to the 

grounds beyond Caithness and the Orkneys, 

Fishery ^^^ there they remain till November is on 

the wane. It is said that their first catch is 

sent back at once so that it may be sent as an offering of 

loyalty to the Palace at The Hague, and it also serves as a 

formal announcement that the season's fishing has begun. 

For the rest of the year the Scheveningen fisherman takes his 

ease. Any form of manual labour is beneath his notice. 

Wliat he earns in six months on the fishing grounds has 

to keep him for the other half year, and the fishing 

boats are drawn up amid the dunes above the highest tide 

level. 

During the months of ease he is always very well dressed 
in a suit of black broadcloth, unreheved by an}^ colour. The 
coat is always a reefer jacket particularly full at the skirt, 
and the trousers are loose in proportion. The jacket is cut 
with very sloping shoulders and the effect is that the burhest 
man appears to have a small head out of proportion to his 
size. On the top of his head he wears a diminutive cap, two 
or three sizes too small, and apparently kept in its place by 
balance. They gain nothing from their costume, but if they 
are carefully examined they are seen to be men of thews and 
sinews. They have the complexions of girls, are absolutely 
unemotional, walk to The Hague and back as a sort of con- 
stitutional, and although they must all be smokers are never 
to be seen smoking in the streets of the capital. They are 



172 Holland of the Dutch 

described as God-fearing men, who take their Bibles with 
them when they go away fishing, and it is certain that they 
keep themselves apart with an air of proud reserve from their 
neighbours. They are men of Scheveningen first and last. 
What is surprising is that they have remained so without 
seeking change across so many centuries. 

The women of Scheveningen are of the same stamp. They 
remain constant to the Uttle fishing town, and, unUke the 
men, they rarely venture even so far as The 
/^part. Hague. They have a costume pecuHar to 

themselves. They wear httle white caps free 
from lace ornament, but accompanied by two silver bands 
across the front of the head which forms some simulacrum 
of a helmet. Otherwise their dress is something hke the 
Zeeland costume, and the arms are bare below the elbow. 
It is said that no woman of Scheveningen ever marries a man 
of any other place, and it is certainly true that no outsider 
would venture to take up his residence in the place. It is a 
close borough. The women are absorbed in their household 
duties, and have no need to seek employment at the hands of 
others, for although fortunes are not made out of herrings, 
there is enough profit for all to five by. They also make the 
men's clothes, and knit those strong woollen stockings 
which the men wear on the fishing boats, and which seem 
un tear able. The little community is deeply religious. While 
the men are reading their Bibles at sea, the women pass the 
evenings singing psalms and offering up prayers for their 
safe return. 

The fishing community of Marken, in the Zuyder Zee, is 

somewhat similar in its isolation, but this is less remarkable 

„ , in its case, for it is cut off from the land, is 

Iilsrlccn 

seldom visited by others, and has not the 

temptation of a capital at its door. 

Marken was separated from the mainland in the thirteenth 

century by a great inrush from the sea, and has remained 

an island ever since. The little community of perhaps a 




A MAX OF ZEELAXD 



Costumes and Weddings 173 

thousand souls holds no relations with the mainland, and the 
people on the mainland hold no relations with it because it 
is regarded as hopelessly behind the times. The men are all 
engaged in fishing, not in the ocean, but in the inland sea, and 
this is the sole industry of the place. The women devote all 
their time to knitting and weaving. Foreign visitors some- 
times go to Marken because it is one of " the dead cities of the 
Zuyder Zee," but the islanders give them no encouragement 
to come again. 

The island consists of eight mounds, which for a great part 
of the year are separated from each other by water, and 
represent so many islets. One contains the church, another 
the school, and a third the cemetery. It is not surprising 
then that this isolated community has retained costumes 
peculiar to itself, but we cannot go so far as to adopt the view 
that here may be seen the exact dress that was worn by the 
peasants of the thirteenth century. The men wear dark 
grey breeches fitting tightly to the leg and fastened just 
below the knee. A jacket of the same colour and texture — 
a thick warm cloth woven on the island — is tucked under the 
waistband of the breeches. The jacket is ornamented with a 
double row of silver buttons or coins, which gives it a military 
appearance. This is somewhat nullified by the white wooden 
shoes, or klompen, worn when working and exchanged for 
carpet slippers when on shore. In winter they wear fur caps, 
and in summer felt hats which are large enough to afford 
shade from the sun. The men fish all the week, only taking 
Sunday as a day of rest. 

The distinctive feature of the women's dress is an enormous 
white cap which stands up in the form of a bishop's mitre. 
It is tied under the chin to prevent its being blown away, 
and it is ornamented with a lace frill. But the extraordinary 
part of the arrangement is that there protrudes under the 
cap on the forehead a band or coil of rough artificial hair 
which conceals it. Nor is this all, for on each side depends a 
braid of hair that comes down well over the bosom. The 



174 Holland of the Dutch 

hair may have been cut from the wearer's own head to form 
these tresses, but sometimes it is otherwise and even horse 
hair is used to form them. The origin of this practice has 
baffled all inquiry. 

The women all wear a white chemise with red stripes 
showing clearly above a red bodice and over the arms, which 
it covers to the elbows. The petticoat or dress is always of 
two colours, the upper part being grey or blue, and the lower 
part dark brown. The community is too poor for gold or 
silver ornaments of any kind ; the curious tresses which are 
the badge of these islanders seem to take their place. 

At Zaandam, on the mainland, artificial coils of hair form 
part of the coquetry of the ladies, but here it is confined to a 
little bunch on each side of the gilt or silver bands which 
hold an elaborate lace cap together. Here it is noticeable 
that the women wear long earrings, but these are not fixed 
in the ear, but hang from a chain which is looped round the 
ear. The people of Zaandam also wear necklaces and as many 
chains and brooches as they possess or can fasten on the 
bodice of their dress. 

There remains to notice but the most striking of all, the 

costume of Friesland. Here is to be met with the ancient 

golden head-dress of the Frisian woman, badge 

Friesland. aUke of the independence and prosperity of 

the province. We may regard it as evidence 

alike of the wealth of the people and of their confidence in 

their abiUty to preserve it against the despoiler. 

It has always been the national boast of the Frisian (whose 
name finds its first charter as a nation in the pages of Tacitus) 
that he " will be a free man as long as the winds disperse the 
clouds in the Heavens or the world shall exist." 

Here the head-covering is not confined to the small bands 
of the Zeeland custom, but it really does consist of a metal 
covering fitting closely to the head hke a cap. The metal is 
always gold or silver, and there are quite as many gold helmets 
as silver even among servants and shopgirls. The reason of 



Costumes and Weddings 175 

this is that the gold helmets look down on the silvern, and as 
these articles are very often a present on betrothal, it follows 
that a great effort is made to provide the dearer article. The 
cost of the cheapest of golden helmets is about £25, and it is 
perhaps not going too far to imagine that the savings of the 
young women are sometimes added to those of her intended 
to obtain the more precious article. After all, it is a purchase 
for Ufe, subject to no arbitrary changes of fashion, and the 
intrinsic value of the metal remains. 

These helmets are worn in the house as well as out of doors. 
As a rule they are divided into two parts, which are joined on 
the top of the head by a row of pins and 
Helmets!" chains. There is some variety in these bind- 
ing Hnks, and in the first place they are gener- 
ally few in number and simple of character, but the ambition 
of the wearer is to add to their number as time goes on. 
Among ladies of position it was not unusual in old days to 
stud the helmet with precious stones, but this fashion is dying 
out, and the tendency is to leave the wearing of the helmet 
more and more out of the fashionable toilette. But this 
turning the back on old customs finds no support from the 
masses. Even the very poor who can afford neither gold 
nor silver wear substitutes of copper or steel, which when 
pohshed look very Uke the genuine article. 

The helmet has its symboUcal uses besides being part of 
what is generally known as full dress. One's servant will not 
wear it when she is washing the doors or the shutters, but she 
will certainly put it on to admit visitors or to hand round 
afternoon tea. It is said that one of the ways in which a 
Frisian maiden notifies her refusal or acceptance of an offer 
of marriage is by leaving the room and returning in her 
helmet. That means full acceptance. If she is helmetless 
and does not leave the room that signifies an equally emphatic 
refusal. If at the time of the proposal she is wearing her 
helmet it may be assumed that she finds some other way of 
notifying her decision. The spectacle of a group or collection 



176 Holland of the Dutch 

of helmeted women in a pubKc square or procession is impres- 
sive, but in church the effect is destroyed or minimised by the 
congregation placing small and rather grotesque bonnets of 
fruit and flowers over their helmets. When, however, the 
church ceremony is a wedding the bonnets are dispensed with, 
and the only addition is the httle lace cap which increases the 
effect of the sheen of the metal. Otherwise a wedding in 
Friesland is very much what it is in other parts of the Nether- 
lands ; only the carriages are gala carriages with painted 
panels. 

Among minor costumes, those of Hindeloopen, an old- 
world town on the eastern shore of the Zuyder Zee, deserve 
brief mention. The women wear a waist-band 

Hindeloopen. of thin black velvet or silk cord, which is 
wound round and roimd them until it forms 
quite a respectable girth. It has been said that the process 
requires an hour and a half to bring to completion, but this 
need not be too imphcitly beheved. The lady of this town 
wears three caps one over the other, and when she goes out 
a tall straight bonnet, something like a man's tall hat, over all 
of them. She also wears a long mantle hanging loosely from 
the shoulders and almost touching the ground. In Over Ijssel 
lace caps are worn over black silk ones, and long gold earrings 
hang from the sides of the cap. 

The marriage customs of Holland include some curious 
practices. Great importance is attached to the betrothal 
or " betrouwed " ceremony. In Friesland it is customary 
for a man or woman who intend to wed to sit up all night in 
the kitchen of the woman's house with a Ughted candle 
between them. It is intended that this conversation and 
communion in the stiU hours of the night should enable them to 
judge whether they are hkely to get on with one another. If 
they have not arrived at a complete agreement before the 
candle burns out it is concluded that they are not made for 
one another, and the negotiation is dropped. At Scheveningen 
the betrothal is celebrated in the church with almost as much 



Costumes and Weddings 177 

ceremony as the wedding itself, and after it is over the whole 
party are taken for a drive in the best carriages the place 
provides. The whips are garlanded, sweets are distributed 
freely, and all the men, including the drivers, are supplied with 
cigars. 

The marriage ceremony generally takes place from the 
house of the bridegroom's parents, which will seem in Enghsh 

eyes an inversion of the usual order of things. 
Weddings. and one of the important episodes of the affair 

is the arrival of the bride and her belongings 
the day before the wedding. These are brought over in a 
large wagon, always driven by the bridegroom, and some- 
times followed by the bride's own special cow. On the 
wedding day two ceremonies take place, one in the Stadhuis, or 
town hall, and the other in the church, and afterwards the 
whole party meet at dinner. One of the peculiarities is that 
the bride changes her dress four times before the assembled 
company. During the afternoon the bridegroom drives the 
bride round the country in a high chaise which contains no 
one but themselves, but they are followed by as many more 
members of the party as can find or hire vehicles. During 
this tour they throw sweets to every one and bags of sweets to 
the children who are eagerly awaiting them along the roadside, 
and greet them with shouts of " Bruid, bruid, strooi je suikers 
uit" (" Bride, bride, strew your sugars about "). 

Christenings are also made an occasion for festivities, but 
they need not detain us as they are of a simpler, if similar, 

character to those at weddings. Sweetmeats 
Funerals. for the children, and hot spirits and special 

kinds of bread, which sometimes contain 
sausage meat, for the grown-ups, are the outstanding dishes 
upon which the guests are regaled. At funerals also the 
flowing glass goes round, but the sweets are absent. Perhaps 
the most distinctive figure in connection with funerals is the 
Aansprekher, who goes round to all the friends and relatives 
on the day of the death, announcing the melancholy news in 

I a — (3390) 



178 Holland of the Dutch 

a form of recitative, and leaving a card or notice relative to 
the deceased with a broad mourning border. The Aans- 
prekher wears a three-cornered hat and knee breeches. He is 
a melancholy looking figure, and he has a melancholy mission 
for his livelihood. 



CHAPTER XIX 

LITERATURE AND JOURNALISM 

Although Holland has not attained the same glory in the 
field of letters as she achieved in the realm of Art, she still 
possesses a brilliant literature of which she may rightly feel 
proud. De Amicis compares it to "a Uttle tree laden with 
fruit." As art appeals to everybody by the eye, it enjoys 
an international currency to which literature cannot aspire, 
because it must pass through the medium of a language, and 
Dutch is the mother tongue of a small nation, and enjoys no 
vogue beyond the boundaries of Holland and possibly Flanders. 
There was a period of the sixteenth and early seventeenth 
centuries when the Netherlands stood first in the world of 
learning. Erasmus, Spinoza, and Grotius have never been 
surpassed as the great luminaries of human intelligence, but 
then they did not write in Dutch but in Latin, the lingua 
franca of the educated and the intellectual. When it became 
necessary to reach the multitude Latin had to be abandoned 
for the common tongue, and national literatures came into 
being. At that juncture Holland produced Vondel and Catz, 
the fathers, as it were, of Dutch literature. 

Both were poets of unequal merit and erratic purpose, but 
still endowed with the gift of genius. Vondel is the Homer 

or Milton of Holland, and, like the latter, 
^^Catzf" he found his chief inspiration in the Bible. 

His Lucifer might perhaps be compared 
to some parts of Paradise Lost set for the stage. Perhaps 
his most striking work was the Palamede, or the story of 
Olden-Barneveldt. Others prefer his Gilbert d'Amstel, of 
which one performance a year is compulsory to the present 
day in Amsterdam. Vondel could not shake off the mysticism 
and obscurantism of the age, but his works contain many 

179 



180 Holland of the Dutch 

fine passages, and his patriotic ballads inspired the soldiers 
and sailors of the seventeenth century. It is said that 
Maurice of Nassau banished him for his Palamede, but that 
Frederick Henry bestowed his favour on him in recognition 
of the patriotism that inspired his muse. That patriotism, 
it may be remarked, was coloured with some discreet flattery 
to the Prince himself. 

Jacob Catz was Vondel's contemporary, indeed he was 
slightly his senior, having been born in 1577 whereas Vondel's 
year of birth was 1587. Catz was more favourably circum- 
stanced, too, than Vondel. He was rich and held several 
of the highest offices in his country. He served as Ambassador 
to England and as Grand Pensionary. He wrote therefore 
at his ease, without desire or need to propitiate the powerful 
by flattery, and without fear of exile if he failed to please them. 
It was said of him that he laboured all day in his office or the 
Senate, and that on his return home he employed his time in 
making verses. Catz was a philosopher as well as a poet. 
He tuned his muse to fit the vicissitudes of everyday life. 
He treats of every circumstance, and strives to give the best 
advice as to how to deal with all the accidents and incidents of 
human life. Even to this day the general panacea in Holland 
is to consult Catz in the first place. The French have called 
him the Dutch La Fontaine. 

A long interval ensued before Holland produced another 

writer entitled to be placed alongside Vondel and Catz. The 

eighteenth century was far advanced when 

Bilderdijk. William Bilderdijk disclosed his varied genius 

for the admiration of [his fellow-countrymen. 

Of the three fathers of Dutch hterature his genius was the 

most diffuse. He wrote the first national history, his great 

epic. The Destruction of the Earlier World, was never 

completed, and his Dutch grammar laid the foundations 

for the exact study of the national language, for it must 

be remembered that all these men were fully conscious of the 

fact that they were striving to secure for the Netherlander 







< I 

o S 

o 



-^i 



Literature and Journalism 181 

tongue a definite place among the languages of Europe. At 
his best Bilderdijk was on a par with Vondel, but he wrote a 
great deal too much, and suffered from a certain vanity which 
made him beUeve or at least readily accept the suggestion of 
some of his admirers that he was superior to Shakespeare. 

If these three writers estabhshed the claims of the Dutch 
language to be regarded as the effective vehicle for great 
thoughts and brilliance in style, it was not till the beginning 
of the nineteenth century that the Dutch literary world 
became largely productive. Hendrik Tollem, the most 
patriotic of all the song-writers of Holland, carried on Bilder- 
dijk's work, and found a stirring theme in the liberation of the 
country in 1813, and the subsequent foundation of the Nether- 
lands Kingdom. Another of his most widely read poems 
describes the death of Barendts in the Arctic, Da Costa 
shared his work and his fame, but curiously enough since 
their disappearance Dutch poesy has been more or less silent. 

The true manifestation of Dutch literary productiveness 
dates from about 1838, when the works of Henri Conscience 
and other leaders of the Flemish School stirred up a spirit 
of emulation. Van Lennep is the great romancist of Holland, 
and his career almost coincides in point of time with that 
of the Fleming. Curiously enough, both are styled the Walter 
Scott of the countries north and south of the Moerdyck. 
Van Lennep was, however, more than an historical novelist. 
He had some of the qualities of Dickens, and his pictures of 
Dutch character and life, notably in his Nicoletta Zevenster, 
are faithful to the original. Of the same school as Van Lennep 
was Schimmel, and among ladies Madame Rosboom Toussaint 
has been compared to George Eliot. It is said, however, that 
the era of the historical novel has passed away, and certainly 
there does not seem any serious effort in current Hterature to 
revive it. 

One of the most remarkable movements in Dutch literature 
was that started about seventy years ago for the purpose of 
promoting not merely purity of style but accuracy of language, 



182 Holland of the Dutch 

as many errors had crept into the Dutch tongue, and been 

given currency by the most reputed writers. With the view 

of arresting this tendency, a critical journal 

The "Gids." entitled the Gids was founded by Potgieter 
and Bakhuizen van den Brink. The Gids 
was a kind of Edinburgh Review, and waged war on sloven- 
liness of style, misplaced or perverted words, and even wrong 
spelling. The critic Conrad Huet laboured in the same field, 
and a tendency to rush blindly into literature without proper 
equipment was thus checked. The original Gids ceased to 
exist in 1860, but a new Gids works on much the same hues. 

The new literary school produced in its early phase Nicholas 
Beets, the close observer of his fellow-countrymen, and the 
recorder of the passing moods of social life. For two of his 
most widely read stories he selected typical famiHes, the 
Stastogs and the Kegges, but perhaps his masterpiece was the 
Camera Obscura, known to the English readers as well as the 
Dutch public. Huet, the critic, also produced a remarkable 
work on Dutch Hfe in his Lidewyde. 

Genestet, a satirical poet of great promise, died at the early 
age of thirty, and lyrists of the present day are Miss Lapidotte- 
Swarth and Louis Couperus. Of novelists still Uving perhaps 
Mrs. Adele Opzoomer is the most widely read, but Louis 
Couperus writes fiction as well as poetry. Some younger 
writers are coming to the front, amiong whom may be named 
Mr. de Sinclair, a member of one of the Scottish families long 
established in the Netherlands. 

History is principally represented by Mr. P. J. Blok, who 
has produced an enormous work in five volumes on The People 
of the Netherlands. Some of these volumes have been trans- 
lated into English. Professor Kuenen, of Leyden, is also a 
great authority on the Bible, and ranks among the first 
Hebrew scholars of the age. In military history General 
de Bas has gained a high reputation by his works on 
The Campaign of 1815, and Prince Frederick of the 
Netherlands. 



Literature and Journalism 183 

Mr. de Savomin Lohman, partly politician and partly 
publicist — ^he owns and edits the Nederlander — writes a great 
deal on public and economic questions ; but his wife is even 
better known as a critic of the prevalent views in the upper 
society of The Hague. Among lady writers who champion 
woman suffrage may be named Mrs. Goekoop de Jong and 
Miss Cornelie Huygens, the authoress of the pathetic story 
called Barthold Maryan. 

Considering that literature is a very poorly remunerated 
profession — due mainly to the very limited public to which 
it is addressed — ^the number of aspirants to literary fame must 
be pronounced considerable. This is largely due to the fact 
that many well-to-do persons having little to occupy their 
time, turn to the profession of letters for recreation. Many 
Dutch writers in less fortunate circumstances add to their 
emoluments by writing in French for French periodicals and 
in German for German magazines. There are some even who 
write in English, but none have attained the extraordinary 
fluency of Dr Kuyper, whose work in English on " Symbols " 
is quite a classic, and whose Stone lectures some years ago 
attracted so much attention in the United States. 

There is another explanation of the circumstance that 
literature in Holland is a poorly paid profession. The Dutch 
are great readers, but as a rule they do not buy books. The 
library in a private house is generally limited to a few copies 
of the older authors, and it is very rare indeed to see a work 
of the day on the bookshelf. The seeming contradiction is 
explained by the fact that the circulating Ubrary exists in 
Holland on a very large and popular scale These societies 
are known as leesgezelschappen — reading clubs — and they 
specialise in the books most in demand in the particular town 
or commune in which they are situated. Thus, there are 
reading clubs for clergymen, soldiers, merchants, and even 
servants. They contain a reading-room, and as it is warm 
and comfortably furnished, work girls make it a regular 
meeting-place during the long winter evenings. But they 



184 Holland of the Dutch 

do not assemble to talk but to read, and silence is strictly 
enjoined on all present. In the summer evenings the rooms 
are generally deserted except when it rains. 

This side of the reading-room is to be seen only in the larger 
towns, and the great majority of the leesgezelschappen are 
circulating libraries and nothing more. For 
Ro^om?' ^ ^^^ pence per volume the member can 
borrow any of the leading works of the day, 
and included amongst them are French, English, and German 
publications, as well as those of home production. The 
principal periodicals, such as the Revue des Deux Mondes, 
the Fortnightly, and the Nineteenth Century, are also taken in 
regularly, but as a rule these are not allowed out of the reading- 
room until a certain time after receipt. The worst that can 
be said against the system is that as very few copies are 
taken of even the most popular works, and rarely indeed more 
than one copy of any, it is a long time passing round even the 
limited circle of a small gemeente, but then the Dutch are very 
patient. 

For a long time the Dutch refused to adhere to the Berne 
Convention, and Dutch authors had no more protection in 
foreign countries than foreign authors enjoyed in Holland. 
Dutch opinion came round to the view that they were losing 
more than they gained, and accordingly Holland joined the 
Berne League last year. This gave protection among others 
to Dutch photographers, which they very much appreciated, 
as they had long seen their work reproduced with impunity 
and without any benefit to themselves. The change will 
undoubtedly benefit the foreign author in Holland, but it is 
not at all clear that the improved position of the alien author 
will greatly raise the chances of the man of letters among the 
Dutch themselves. 

The Dutch press is highly developed, and absorbs a large 

part of the mental activity of the country. 

Indeed, there are some very able men who 

prefer to remain journahsts instead of seeking more permanent 




THE HON. DR. KUYPER 
{Late Prime Minister) 



Literature and Journalism 185 

fame as authors. The leading article still forms the 
main feature of the daily paper, but the terse paragraph 
under " News of the Day " has also come into favour, 
and figures in every important journal. 

The papers of Amsterdam and Rotterdam take the lead in 
importance, and there is a certain rivalry between the cities, 
but the palm of merit rests with the former. This is not 
surprising seeing that Rotterdam is a purely commercial city, 
and has never been connected with any literary movement. 
On the other hand, it must be admitted that in respect of 
information and regularity of its foreign intelligence, the 
Rotterdam News is not surpassed in Holland. A large pro- 
portion of the provincial press borrow all their foreign intelli- 
gence from its columns, and in some places the publication 
of the local paper is purposely delayed until after the arrival 
of the Rotterdam News. As trains in Holland are very often 
late, the hours of publishing the evening editions in the East 
and North are always a little uncertain. 

But whatever the merits of this paper may be, the leading 
organ of Dutch opinion is unquestionably the Amsterdam 
Algemeen Handelsblad, of which Mr. Charles Boissevain is the 
guiding spirit. The Handelsblad has its own correspondent 
in the principal capitals, but its reputation rests on the 
editorials and the commentaries in briefer form on Dutch 
politics. Both the papers named are Liberal ; in fact, in a 
party sense the Conservative press is non-existent. 

At The Hague the principal paper entitled Vaderland is also 
Liberal, and of a somewhat advanced type. It has largely 
influenced political thought at the seat of government, but 
it does not possess the circulation or the financial resources 
of the two others. The Socialists, too, have their organ, 
Het Volk, but its circulation is still more restricted, despite 
the efforts of their leader, Mr. Troelstra, to gain the public ear. 

The nearest approach to a Conservative paper is the 
Standard of Amsterdam, founded under the auspices of and 
long edited by the veteran Dr. Abraham Kuyper. This is 



186 Holland of the Dutch 

the organ of the Anti- Revolutionary Party, and proclaims as 
its doctrine God and the King, or rather the Bible and the 
sovereign. It is remarkable in this age of disbeHef to find a 
man making the Bible the foundation of all his opinions. This 
is less surprising when the individual is a Calvinist, but it 
disturbs all preconceived notions to find him at the same time 
a champion of the Divine right of kings. The spectre of 
Revolution and SociaHsm must be regarded as the cause of 
this seeming anomaly. The orthodox Liberals, who may be 
compared to our Whigs or Liberal-Unionists, regard themselves 
as the true champions of the Constitution, and have certainly 
no sympathy with subversive doctrines. 

The Roman CathoHc body have many provincial organs, 
and at least one paper of national importance. This is the 
Tijd {" Times "). Dr. Herman Schaepman, who is a poet 
as well as a priest, largely contributes to it, as well as to the 
more democratic Centrum. The great names in Dutch j oumal- 
ism are still Kuyper, Boissevain, and Schaepman, and all have 
largely contributed to the formation of pubUc opinion in their 
respective communities. The Dutch press is beginning to 
show the influence of modem needs, and an increasing tendency 
to supply news instead of articles is noticeable. But very 
few of the papers can afford to maintain foreign correspond- 
ents, and therefore the majority of the papers borrow from 
the few under the terms of a subscription. It also follows that 
the information on foreign politics is the same throughout the 
whole of the press — a mere reproduction of the news pubhshed 
by either the Amsterdam or Rotterdam leading organ. 

Illustrated journalism is well represented by the weeklies 
called De Prins and De Buiten The former, hke the London 
illustrated papers, deals with topical and current events, 
but its illustrations are on a more modest scale than those of 
the Graphic and Illustrated, and it would not dream of sending 
its own artist-correspondent to *' the scene of war." On the 
other hand, De Buiten, which deals with country Hfe and 
archaeological subjects, aims at a higher standard of artistic 



Literature and Journalism 187 

excellence, and will rank with any of its contemporaries in 
the same class. Annual publications of a more or less propa- 
gandist order are Moot Holland and Zeelandia, which are 
largely distributed in hotels and other places of pubHc resort. 
The former contains letterpress as well as pictures, and is 
especially interesting. Altogether it is reckoned that the 
Dutch press now numbers nearly 2,000 separate publications. 



CHAPTER XX 

ART, OLD AND NEW 

If Holland were not high up on the roll of fame for her history 
she would be for her art ; and it will always be regarded 
as a singular instance of national vigour that the centuries 
during which she took the lead in policy and arms were 
also her golden age in art. But perhaps the conjunction is 
less remarkable when we remember that the stirring scenes 
amid which the first Stadtholders were making and consolidat- 
ing the independence of the country supphed the battle 
passages and seascapes transferred from life to the canvases of 
Wouvermans and Vandenvelde. It was to other and more 
typically national subjects however that the great artists 
devoted their attention, pastoral scenes, civic ceremonies, 
Dutch interiors, Dutch animals, all unmistakably identified 
with their country and no other. The great qualities of the 
Dutch character, patience and persistency, were revealed in 
the absolute accuracy of detail, the close attention to the 
minute, the sense of proportion, and the harmonious colouring 
which distinguish the Dutch school from any other. 

It is unnecessary to dwell on the well-known fact that 
whereas Italian art dealt with the ideal which implies the 

sacrifice of truth to the beautiful, Dutch art 
The Golden concentrated its attention on the material 
Dutch Art. ^^d the visible. Leaving Madonnas and 

Saints for the southern imagination, Dutch 
painters showed us men and women as they existed, and often 
in their most unattractive and repellent forms. If we wish 
to know how the people lived and amused themselves in the 
seventeenth century we have only to turn to the paintings of 
Frans Hals and Jan Steen, Van Ostade and Mieris. 

188 



Art, Old and New 189 

But great as were the painters of life, the painters of nature 
were still greater, and it must be remarked that they had no 
adventitious help from the only natural objects within their 
reach. They knew not nature in her romantic guise of forest, 
flood, and mountain, but in the humdrum aspect of the 
canal bank, the sparsely wooded landscape and the tree-lined 
road. Yet these masters included Ruysdael and 
Hobbema. 

One form of nature that could not be surpassed as a model 
existed at their door, the Sea ; and among Dutch marine 
painters, in addition to the elder Vandenvelde who went into 
battle to study the realism of naval strife, were Backhuysen, 
Stork, Dabbels and the younger Vandenvelde. And then we 
have the painters of animals culminating in the great Paul 
Potter and his famous Bull, the glory of The Hague 
Mauritshuis. 

But the glory of Dutch art concentrates in the person of 

Rembrandt, whose genius seems more comprehensive and 

commanding the more closely it is studied. 

Rembrandt. Holland has known how to keep in due 
honour and security his two masterpieces 
the " Arquebusiers " at Amsterdam, and the " Anatomy 
Lesson " at The Hague. The former is perhaps the most 
impressive and gorgeous grouping of human figures, and 
the latter the most significant and awe inspiring study of 
the human form that were ever placed on canvas. Rem- 
brandt was nearly as great in his landscapes, witness his Mill ; 
and his portraits are famous above all. Nor should mention 
of his great contemporary and rival in a sense. Van der Heist, 
or of Gerard Douw, be omitted, although all we wish to recall 
before dealing with the more recent period is something of 
the greatness of the past. 

De Amicis has some very just remarks about the distinctive 
merit of the early Dutch painters, and the special circum- 
stances that created it. First, he says the peculiar light of 
Holland could not fail to give rise to a special manner of 



190 Holland of the Dutch 

painting. " A pale light," he writes, *' waving with marvellous 
mobility through an atmosphere impregnated with vapour, 
a nebulous veil continually and abruptly torn, a perpetual 
struggle between Ught and shadow ; such was the spectacle 
which attracted the eye of the artist. He began to observe 
and to reproduce all this agitation of the heavens, this struggle 
which animates with varied and fantastic Ufe the sohtude of 

nature in Holland He accumulated darkness that 

he might spUt and seam it with all manner of luminous effects 
and sudden gleams of light ; sunbeams darted through the 
rifts, sunset reflections and the yellow rays of lamp Ught 
were blended with dehcate manipulation into mysterious 
shadows and their dim depths were peopled with half seen 
forms ; and thus he created all sorts of contrasts, enigmas, 
play and effect of strange and unexpected chiaroscuro. . . . 
And thus the Dutch painters were potent colourists and 
Rembrandt was their chief." 

After the middle of the eighteenth century Dutch art 
seemed to dechne. Peace and prosperity had dulled the 
artistic senses, but it must be allowed that the condition of 
society was no longer wholly favourable to the unfettered 
display of genius. A feeUng of uncertainty pervaded the 
country, the national spirit had declined, and finally the 
overthrow of the House of Orange and the acceptance of 
French views and rule cast a blight over the land. Art was 
dereUct and the productive power of the Dutch school 
exhausted ; men spoke of it as of something that had passed 
away. 

But as soon as Holland came by her own again as the sequel 
of the formation of the kingdom of the Netherlands there 
was, among other evidences of national vigour, a remarkable 
revival in the artistic interest and productiveness of the 
country. A new school of art came into being, not unworthy 
to be considered as following in the footsteps of the old, and 
in the last half century it has grown more vigorous, more 
comprehensive and more world known. A great art critic 



Art, Old and New 191 

has written, " Dutch art is now as fresh and varied as in the 
old days of its glory." 

Among these regenerators of the Dutch school the brothers 
Maris are entitled to a very foremost place. Each had a 
distinct style although all favoured landscapes. 
The Maris It has always been a characteristic of Dutch 
Brothers. painters that they did not confine themselves 
to one subject as strictly as their fellow- 
artists in other countries, and thus all the Maris brothers 
painted portraits, although their best work was done in 
landscapes. Jacob Maris, the eldest and probably the 
best of them, painted nature on a large scale, but he often 
varied the subject by selecting an animated scene Uke the 
beach at Scheveningen, or Sunday afternoon in The Hague 
Wood. His second brother, Willem, was a landscapist, pure 
and simple, but he generally introduced into the scene cattle 
or horses. Both these artists painted very brightly, and they 
pleased the spectator by leaving httle or nothing to his own 
imagination or intuition. Their popularity was great in their 
Hfetime and is not likely to diminish. 

The third brother, Thys Maris, was entirely different, and he 
was as obscure and individuahstic as his brothers were the 
reverse. His colouring imitated Turner's, and some of his 
critics went so far as to declare that the subjects treated 
were quite undiscernable. This characteristic was bad enough 
in landscapes, but when it came to portraits the result was 
sometimes fatal to all resemblance with the original, and the 
patron refused to accept it. But none the less Thys Maris 
had his own coterie of admirers who proclaimed him the 
greatest artist in the nineteenth century. In several respects 
he might be compared to Whistler. 

The sea continues to appeal largely to the Dutch imagination 
and marine painters are many. Israels was more especially 
the painter of fishing scenes, the boats of Scheveningen pro- 
viding him with a model close to his door. But the greatest 
of all Dutch painters of the sea in the nineteenth century was 



192 Holland of the Dutch 

unquestionably Hendrik Willem Mesdag, and he probably 
has not had a superior since the elder Vandenvelde over two 
centuries ago. 

Although of a totally different style, Voerman is probably 
the painter whose reputation in the opinion of the Dutch 
comes next to Mesdag's. He began by painting flowers, but 
he soon turned to landscape, and in this branch he gained a 
position second to none. His colouring is very vivid and he 
aims at producing sharp contrasts by showing storms in the 
skies over peaceful scenes on earth. Clouds are his chief study, 
and with them he produces some of his most striking effects. 
As a painter of flowers Verster has carried on his work, and 
unUke his predecessor, has remained faithful to his first love. 
In brilliance of colour, and in minuteness of detail, Verster is 
unsurpassable. 

Interiors of churches, and still more particularly of houses, 
have always had a great attraction for the Dutch painter. 
Here we find men like Blommers, Bosboom and Bles, whose 
merit is recognised far outside their own country. The best 
portrait painters are Bisschop, de Jong, and Miss Therese 
Schwartze. All the artists named work or worked on the 
traditional lines and may be called for convenience sake 
" the old school." But art is changing in Holland, and a new 
impressionist school has been most in evidence during the last 
twenty years. 

Prominent among these is Toorop, who was the first to 
introduce an Asiatic influence into Dutch art. He is accom- 
plished in every branch of art, and paints 
Sh^6l ^^ water colour as well as oil. Toorop is 
not merely a great artist but a great influence 
in the art world of his country. Onnes and Bauer are perhaps 
the two most notable of his followers and successors. Bauer 
also selects oriental subjects, chiefly the interiors of Turkish 
mosques. 

But of all forms of painting, portraiture has been the 
most in vogue, perhaps for the material reason that it is the 



Art, Old and New 193 

surest means of earning an income. Bisschop was the 
favourite of the last generation, just as Veth, Haverman and 
Antoon Van Welie are the favourites to-day. There are a 
remarkable number of lady artists. The late Madame 
Roozeboom, Madame van Bosse, Miss Bakhuizen, are three 
of the best known, but new-comers are spoken of every day. 

In Holland the artist enjoys special faciUties for bringing 
his work under the notice of the pubUc and for disposing of 
his paintings. In the first place it is not in any way derogatory 
for an artist to hold an exhibition himself of his own work, 
and one of the most celebrated of modern painters used to 
regularly open his studio at The Hague on Sundays for the 
purpose. But apart from this, there are frequent local 
exhibitions in most of the provincial towns, and those of greater 
importance are held in The Hague and Rotterdam. The 
society known as the Pulchri Studio at The Hague exercises 
some of the functions of the Royal Academy in England, 
but only members are allowed to exhibit in its hall. Ad- 
mission to this society can only be obtained by those who 
can show that they are serious workers, and whose merit is 
endorsed by the committee of inspection. To be elected a 
member of the " Pulchri Studio " is therefore not only a great 
honour, but a great advantage to the young artist, for it 
testifies that he has merit and is an earnest worker. 

Painting is far from being the sole form in which art finds 
expression among the Dutch. Etching and engraving find 
many able followers, and some of the most successful painters 
employ their leisure in silver and other metal work. Wood 
carving is also in great vogue, and as there is a ready market 
for such productions, many young artists with more ambitious 
leanings, commence their career in that branch of artistic 
activity. 

As was explained in the chapter on Education, much of the 
educational system in the secondary and upper schools is 
devoted to the object of developing latent artistic talent. 
The capacity to draw is more widely disseminated among the 

13— (3390) 



194 Holland of the Dutch 

Dutch than in any other country in Europe, and the study of 
anatomy and instruction in painting in colours form part 
of the course in all technical schools, the one condition of 
admission being that the entrant must have proved, by passing 
the statutory examination, that he is a competent drawer 
in black and white. 

It seems probable that Holland will suffer from over- 
production before long, and that as the prizes in the home 
market are not very great, the most successful artists will 
migrate from Holland to Paris or London. A well-known 
instance was that of the late Sir L. Alma Tadema, and in his 
day the competition was less keen than now, although it must 
also be allowed that the prizes were fewer. Already a con- 
siderable number of Dutch artists look to their work for 
foreign patrons as providing a great part of their incomes. 

In concluding this chapter it may be mentioned that 
photography, and especially the higher form of it, known as 
art photography, is highly developed in Holland. A large 
quantity of commission work is done for abroad, and owing 
to the light it is considered that the reproduction comes out 
with greater distinctness and some finer effects than else- 
where. At any rate, there is quite a legion of photographers, 
amateur and professional, plj^ng their cameras both for 
amusement and as a means of HveHhood. But the market 
is over-supphed and in this profession also, the Dutch are 
beginning to feel the need of more elbow-room. Enough 
has been said to show that Holland has no intention of 
relaxing its efforts to be considered one of the chief centres of 
art culture in Europe. 



CHAPTER XXI 

MUSIC AND THE DRAMA 

Opinions differ greatly as to whether the Dutch are a musical 
people or not, and certainly it is not here that such a delicate 
matter could be decided. At one period of the Middle Ages 
they were certainly in the van, but the rehgious fanatics of 
the early seventeenth century condemned music, and for 
nearly a hundred years the voice of song was silent in the 
land. That lost ground may be said to have been never recov- 
ered, but certainly the Dutch are still very appreciative of 
fine music, and very critical of the opposite, but their critical 
sense is so acute that it very often stops musical efEort or 
originahty among themselves, and it is rare to hear music 
or singing in private houses except in the bosom of the family. 
This is not true of the people of Limburg or Nord Brabant, 
who sing with or without reason, on, as someone has said, the 
smallest provocation. No doubt the difference of reHgion 
partly explains this, for the Roman CathoUc Church may be 
regarded as a patron of music. 

In old days national songs were much more in evidence 
than they are now. They included legendary ballads, drink- 
ing songs, and rehgious pieces chiefly from 
^Ballads!"^ the Psalms. These formed the stock reper- 
toire of every one who pretended to be able 
to sing, and the evenings of middle class society were generally 
passed in alternate visits to friends for the express purpose 
of lieder singing. But this has all been changed. The 
national songs, even the jovial ones of the Kermis time, have 
been laid on one side, and if singing or music is given after 
dinner it will generally be found that the performer belongs 
to the profession, and that the pieces played are either classical 
or operatic. The consequences of this new taste are that 

195 



196 Holland of the Dutch 

the old music is d5dng out, and that there is very little 
encouragement to Dutch composers to provide new. 

While making this statement as a sort of general conclusion, 
we do not ignore the fact that a small band led by Mr. Van 
der Linden, founder and director of the Netherlands Opera 
House at Amsterdam, has done its utmost to stem the tide 
of this decay. At this House national opera is encouraged, 
and from time to time the works of hving composers like 
M. R. Hoi, Verhulst, and Nicolai are given, but it must 
be admitted that they never enjoy a very long nm, or attain 
the quahfying result of being accepted as a popular success. 
There are also one or two lady composers hke CorneUe van 
Oosterzee and Catherine van Rennes ; but the rewards for 
musical composition are too few and too small to attract 
many beginners. Through Mr. Van der Linden's efforts 
a society was formed for the encouragement of Dutch music. 
This is known as " The Society of Netherlands Musicians," 
and in addition to holding concerts, where national music alone 
figures on the programme, it holds annual competitions and 
awards prizes. 

The one exception to this gradual disappearance of a popu- 
lar song-literature is the national ballad or anthem in honour 
of WiUiam the Silent, known as the " WilhelmusUed." The 
Venetian envoy Guicciardini noticed in the sixteenth century 
that the people of Holland were very skilful in singing in 
chorus, and the trait is still very marked. All their diffidence 
and self-criticism disappears when it is a song in which all 
join in, and that is another reason why the " WilhelmusUed " 
has lost none of his vogue. If an individual began to sing it 
in a public place the whole audience would feel irresistibly 
induced to join in. But with this exception, it is rare indeed 
to hear any music or singing in the streets. Such popular 
music as there may be is generally supplied by the itinerant 
Itahan organ grinder. 

On the other hand, the Dutch musicians are excellent, 
and the orchestras in the theatres and concert rooms are 



Music and the Drama 197 

almost entirely composed of native talent. The chorus 
at the opera is also national, although it is said that the 

Jewish element largely preponderates, but this 
Musicians. remark applies more especially to Amsterdam. 

There are concert rooms and theatres in 
all towns of any size, and foreign singers and performers of 
repute are sure of a good reception and a handsome douceur, 
even in remote places like Groningen and Leeuwarden. Gro- 
ningen rather affects to be a musical centre, and perhaps the 
existence of the University may have something to do with 
the matter. At all events, the presence of the students ensures 
a demonstrative audience. But perhaps Arnhem is the town 
where the best music is heard, after Amsterdam and The 
Hague. There is a very pleasant restaurant with a fine 
concert room attached with the name inscribed on its portico 
'* Musis Sacrum," and all the year round a string band plays 
inside the restaurant. 

Another proof that the Dutch are not indifferent to music 
may be found in the crowds that flock to hear miUtary or 

municipal bands whenever they play in pubUc. 
Musk.^ National pecuUarity is noticeable on these 

occasions. In most countries people prefer to 
sit down when listening to a band, but in Holland the audience 
without exception walk round and round the band-stand, and 
as a rule at a fairly fast pace. As there are two opposite 
currents, and as the hne of each is not very well kept, it is not 
a very agreeable experience for the stranger, but the people 
themselves seem to enjoy it intensely. The Sunday afternoon 
music in the Bosch at The Hague is heard under more agreeable 
conditions. There are seats and tea kiosks, and for the 
favoured visitors there is the reserved enclosure of the Witte 
Societeit. 

The Hague has one great advantage in respect of music, 
which is not possessed by the other cities. Owing to its 
proximity to Scheveningen, it shares all the special attrac 
tions of that fashionable watering-place during the season. 



198 Holland of the Dutch 

The Kursaal welcomes every year the pick of the operatic 

and concert stars of Paris and London, and its band is selected 

_ „ , with great care and placed under a leading 
The Kursaal at ■,^. -r, r . • 

Scheveningen. conductor. Performances are given twice a 

day, concerts once or twice a week, and there 
is a dancing room set apart. If the Dutch dance anywhere it 
is here, but probably the majority of the couples are Germans. 

Formerly Itahan and French music were the special favour- 
ites of the Dutch public, but of late years Wagner has become 

the vogue, and the Wagner Society of Amster- 
**WaSier. ° ^^"^ ^^M^ ii?>Q\i out at great expense twice 

a year to give a Wagner festival on a scale 
not to be met with out of Bayreuth. As the festival costs 
these enthusiasts a good deal of money, they belong to that 
large corps of worshippers who accept Wagner's sound as music. 
The Wagner Society is not the only institution devoted to 
music. There is the Musical Union of the Netherlands, 

which has afiihated branches in most of the 
Union!*^* provincial towns. It organises most of the 

Dihgentia concerts, and provides for due 
rotation in the visit of distinguished singers and instrumental- 
ists to the provinces. As the subscription is small, it has a 
very large list of members. 

The most popular and best known organiser and conductor 
of concerts in Holland is Mr. WiUiam Mengelberg, who fre- 
quently moves to Paris to fulfil engagements there. Mr. 
Andr6 Beijersbergen van Henegoruwen and Mr. Max Reger are 
also men in the same rank, and arrange concerts which are 
distinguished by their own names. Among national singers 
are Helena Horneman and Annie van de Vijzel for the ladies, 
and among men may be named L. Morrisson (tenor) and 
Frans Daum (baritone). Max Blokzijl has also been heard 
in foreign capitals, chiefly BerUn. 

Among pianists the sisters Louise and Herminia Den 
Hollander rank high, and Mr. H. A. Wegerif is also well known 
as an accompanist. 



Music and the Drama 199 

There is one form of music in which the Dutch have always 
excelled and may be still regarded as exceUing most other 
people. This is as organists, and of course every visitor to 
Holland has heard the famous organ of Haarlem. 

Let us try to sum up a few general impressions. The 
Dutch Uke good music, and can appreciate what is meritorious. 
They are wiUing to pay heavily to hear the best performers, 
and as they never throw their money away on trifles it is 
evident that they do so to gratify their pleasure. To love 
good music for its own sake, is to be half-way on the road to 
be a musician oneself. But something more is necessary 
before a nation can be styled musical. We do not find any 
Dutchmen among great musical composers, nor has the 
country produced any singers of the first flight. But this 
may be due to the absence of home encouragement. It is 
undoubtedly true that Dutch audiences prefer to hear the 
stars of foreign opera houses to their own. In instrumental 
music it is probable that Dutch performers take a higher place, 
and here the national self-diffidence furnishes less of an obstruc- 
tive to the free display of talent. But it is an undeniable fact 
that both in private life and in the streets Dutchmen are 
never heard singing. The one exception to this rule is perhaps 
when some one starts in pubhc on some moving occasion the 
national ballad in honour of WiUiam the Silent, called the 
" Wilhelmushed." Then indeed men and women aUke seem 
led irresistibly to swell the chorus. 

The " WilhelmusUed " was the composition of Marnix de 

Ste. Aldegonde, the most gifted of the supporters of WiUiam 

the Silent and his greatest admirer. As the 

" Wilhelmuslied." text is little known, it may be quoted here. 

It is a mixture of ballad and psalm, and 

WiUiam is supposed to be speaking — 

1 

" Wilhelmris von Nassau bin ich von Deutschem blut. 
Den Vaterland getrewe bleib ich biss in den Tod 
Ein Prinxe von Oranjen bleib ich ganz unversehrt 
Den Konig aus Spannien hab ich abieit geehrt. 



200 Holland of the Dutch 

2 

" In Gottes forcht ru leben hab ich allzeit berracht, 
Darumb ich bm vertrieben umb lande und leuf gebracht 
Aber Gott sol mich regieren als ein gut instrumeiit 
Dass ich mog wider kehren zu meinem regiment. 

3 
" Leit auch mein Untersassen die auff recht seint von art 
Gott wurt euch nicht verlassen allzeit ihr nun beschwert 
Werfromb begehrt zu leben der bitt Gott nacht und Tag 
Dass er xair Kra^t woll geben dass ich euch heliiea mag. 

4 

" Leib und Gut als zusammen habe ich nit gespart 
Mein bruder hoch von Nahmen haben euch auch verwart, 
Graii Adolph ist geblieben zu Friesland in der Schlacht 
Sein Seel in ewigen leben erwart des jungsten tags. 



" Edel und hoch geboren von Kaj'^erlichem Stamm 
Ein Ffirst des Reichs erkohren als ein fromm Christen rn^n". 
Fur Gottes wort gestritten hab ich fren unverzagt 
Als ein held ohne peine mein soel bhit gew-agt. 

6 

" Mein Schildt und mein vertrawen bistu O Soel mein herz, 
Aus dich so will ich bauen verlass mich nimmermehr 
Das ich doch fromb mag bleiben dir dienen alle stunde 
Die Tyrannen vertreiben die mir mein herx vervs^undt. 

7 

" Von alien die mich beschwerten und mein verfolger seindt 
Mein Gott wolst dtx:h bewahren dem trewer diener dein 
Das sie mich nicht erhaschen m ihrem bosen muht 
Ihr hande mit thun waschen in meine unschuldigen blut. 

8 
" Wie David muste sliehen vor Saulo dem Tyrann 
So hab ich mussen weichen mit manchem Edelman 
Aber Gott thet ihn erheben erlosen ausaller noht 
Ein Konigreich gegeben in Israel sehr gross. 

9 

" Noch sawT werdt ich empsangen von Gott mein Herm 
Das fuss darnach so thut verlangen mem Furstliches gemuth 
Das ich doch m6ge sterben mit Ehren in dem Feldt 
Ein ewigs Reich ervverben als ein getreiter heldt. 



i 



Music and the Drama 201 

" Nichts thut mich mehr erbarmen in meinem widersport 
Dann das man sicht verarmen des Konigs Landter gut 
Das euch die Spannier krancken O edel Niederland 
Gut wan ich daran gedencke mein edel herz das blut. 

11 

" Als ein Prinz aus gesessen mit meiner heeres krafft 
Wo von den Feindt vermessen hab ich der schlacht verwagt 
Bey Mastrich lag begraben beforchtet mein gewalt 
Meine renter sahe man traben sehr mutig ober das Feldt. 

12 

" So es der Will des Herrn auf die zeit wer gewest 
Hett ich gem wollen kehren von euch diss schwer Tempest 
Aber der Herz dort oben der alle ding regirt 
Den man allzeit muss loben der hattes nicht begert. 

13v 

" Sehr Christlich wahr getrieben mein Furstenlich gemiith 
Standhasstig ist geblieben mein herz in widersport 
Den herz hab ich gebetten aus meines herzen grundt 
Das er mein sach woll richten mein unschuldt machen kundt. 

14 

" Vriaub mein arme Schassen die seint in grosser noth 
Ewer hirt der soil nicht schlassen und seidt ihr nun verstreit 
Zu soel Gott begeben sein heylsam wort 
Nembt an alsfrommen Christen leben soil hie bald sein gethan. 

15 

" Vor Gott will ich bekennen und seiner grossen macht 
Das ich zu keinen zeiten den Konig hab veracht 
Dan das ich Gott den herzen der hochsten Majestet 
Hat mussen obediren in der Gerechtigkeit." 

As to the drama or theatre generally, there is very little 
to be said. As it did not exist in the days of Holland's prime, 
it is not at all sm-prising to find it a very slow 
Theatre. growth in recent times. In the large cities 
the theatre generally means the appearance 
of a French or German company on tour, and in the provincial 
towns what is called the theatre usually consists of a miscel- 
laneous performance. There is, however, some evidence of 
the commencement of a movement towards a national theatre 



202 Holland of the Dutch 

somewhat on the lines of the Flemish Theatres in Belgium, 
but as there is no State subsidy in Holland, it is necessarily 
on a much more modest scale. Indeed, it would scarcely have 
attracted much attention but for the considerable talent 
of Mr. Louis Bouwmeester, who is regarded as the Dutch 
Irving. It may, however, be observed as a general rule that 
both on the stage and in the concert room sentiment does not 
appeal to the audience. The comedian to be successful must 
turn sentiment into ridicule. The Dutch Uke a sohd repast. 
They appreciate appeals to the deeper sentiments, but they 
turn away from the frivolous. The most popular Dutch plays 
are those dealing with national incidents, but the public do 
not object to the heroic being set off by a foil of broad, and 
it may even be boisterous, humour. 



CHAPTER XXII 

THE PROVINCE OF LIMBURG 

The Province of Limburg is so totally unlike the rest of the 
country and has indeed had such a separate history that it 
seems appropriate to give a special description of its origin, 
and to show how it passed under the sway of HoUand. The 
Netherlanders generally speak of the people of Limburg as 
a race apart, adding comprehensively, " They are not Dutch 
at all," and the Limburgers themselves, when in a chastened 
mood, have a current phrase to the effect " We live in obscur- 
ity/' They mean by this that favours do not fall their way, 
and that in fact they are somewhat neglected. Whatever 
truth there may have been in this behef in the past, it is right 
to say at the very beginning of a chapter which is more or less 
retrospective, that The Hague authorities are now ahve to the 
situation and striving to make up for past omissions. 

In the first century of feudahsm following the break up of 

the dominion of Charlemagne, a Count of Limburg was one 

of the vassals of the Duke of Lower Lorraine 

o?'LimbS?g. or Brabant. At the end of the eleventh 
century the countdom was raised to a Duchy 
by the Emperor of Germany, and it remained more or less 
independent of Brabant for two hundred years. The capital 
of this Duchy was the city of Limburg occupying a picturesque 
position some distance east of Liege near the German frontier, 
and this decayed capital with some of the walls half demolished 
by Marlborough still in situ may be visited to-day by any 
enterprising tourist who takes the train to Dolhain. The 
Duchy lay entirely on the right bank of the Meuse, and 
extended as far north as Venlo. 

About the middle of the thirteenth century, the original 
Limburg family, known as the Walerans, died out in the male 

203 



204 Holland of the Dutch 

line, and the province was claimed by two heirs in the female 
line, Henry of Gueldres and Adolph de Berg. The latter 
sold his rights to John, Duke of Brabant, and the former 
followed suit by transferring his to Henry of Luxemburg, 
who at once obtained the sanction and support of the Arch- 
bishop of Cologne in making good his pretensions. In the 
war that followed victory remained with John of Brabant, 
who won the decisive battle of Woeringen on the banks of 
the Rhine. Limburg then passed into the possession of Bra- 
bant, and it is rather curious to note that the Emperor of 
Germany who first ratified this union was Adolphus of Nassau, 
an ancestor of the reigning Dutch family. From that time 
Limburg shared the fate of Brabant, until both became 
merged in the realm of Burgundy in the year 1430, and from 
that date the province passed with the rest of the Belgian 
Netherlands to the Empire, Spain, and Austria in turn. 

It was not until the Belgian Revolution led to territorial 
changes that a distinct question relating to Limbm"g came into 
being. The Belgians claimed the whole of 
Limburg. *^^ province as part of the Spanish or Austrian 
Netherlands. The Dutch resisted the pre- 
tension more particularly because it implied the loss of Maes- 
tricht, then one of the strongest fortresses on the Meuse, 
and linked with them by old associations. The Powers, 
seeking for a workable solution of a serious problem, were not 
very tender in their treatment of claims based on feudal ties, 
and had no scruples at all in splitting Limburg into two 
parts. The treaties based on the Twenty-four Articles 
gave Holland Maestricht, with a limited area round it on the 
left bank, and the whole of Limburg on the right bank north 
of Vis6. 

Besides Maestricht the Dutch portion contains the important 
towns of Venlo and Roermond, at both which places there are 
bridges over the Meuse. The portion of Limburg left to 
Belgium found a new capital in the town of Hasselt, and the 
old city of Limburg passed into the province of Liege. 




'•^-^ 



zz 




o 



The Province of Limburg 205 

Having secured possession of the territory, the Dutch 

Government did very little to show that it greatly appreciated 

its value. There were several reasons for 

Province^ this apathy. In the first place, the population 

was entirely Catholic, and essentially Belgian 

in its views and sympathies. As the Dutch held that they 

had lost Belgium chiefly on account of the difference in rehgion, 

all Catholics were out of favour at The Hague, and it was not 

surprising that no special effort was made to benefit the 

Limburgers. 

But the second motive for doing as little as possible in this 
direction was even more potent. Having secured this narrow 
strip of territory beyond the Meuse from the Belgians, Holland 
began to fear that she might only have succeeded to lose it 
to Prussia. During the long negotiations that followed the 
opening of the London Conference, Prussia had advanced a 
menacing claim to compensation in Limburg. Although the 
claim had been turned aside, there was no saying when it 
might be revived in another form. It seemed good at The 
Hague then to make no special effort to render it more tempting 
as a prize. 

These views only began to bear fruit when the introduction 
of railways led to the development of the remoter parts of the 
kingdom, and Limburg in its turn asked for improved means of 
communication. After much delay, its expectations were 
answered to the extent of constructing a single-railed Hne from 
Maestricht to Venlo, with a southern link connecting with the 
Belgian system at Vis6. This had to serve the purposes of the 
inhabitants of the province for nearly fifty years, and the Hne 
remained a deca57ing memorial of how railways were built 
in the early years of their existence. It is only within the 
last two years that in deference to the increasing popular 
discontent this Hne of railway has been doubled, or rather, to 
be strictly accurate, the work of doubHng it has been begun 
for it is not yet finished. 

Owing to the absence of proper means of communication, it 



206 Holland of the Dutch 

was impossible to develop the resources of the province which, 

although originally thought to be exceedingly poor, has turned 

out to possess some sources of wealth not to 

Region. ^^ found in any other part of the country. 

Among these are the only coal mines in the 

country. In consequence of that discovery a branch line 

was constructed from Sittard to the centre of the coal district 

at Heerlen, and eventually this was continued across the 

German frontier to Aix-la-Chapelle. But there was one 

remarkable feature about this branch Une. Thanks to German 

initiative, it was double-railed, while the main line with which 

it was linked remained single. 

Another object lesson for the reflecting Limburger was 
provided at Roermond, where the hne from Gladbach to 
Antwerp crosses Dutch territory. This hne is built in the 
substantial style required to carry heavy and express trains. 
At Maestricht itself a similar railway passes affording direct 
communication between Aix-la-Chapelle and Brussels. At 
Venlo there is a further object lesson in the fine double-railed 
German hne to Kaldenkirchen and Essen. These outside 
enterprises showed up the defects and shortcomings of the 
Dutch single-railed line between Vise and Venlo, on the right 
bank of the Meuse. From north to south the Limburgers 
had but a primitive hne of railway while from east to west 
their province was traversed at three points, Maestricht, 
Roermond, and Venlo, by up-to-date and well-equipped 
main hne railways. In addition to these there is the 
double-railed hne terminating at Sittard. 

These facts prove that one grievance of the Limburgers 
was not without justification, and although it is now in the 
way of being removed the feehng remains that the develop- 
ment of their province would have been greater if it had been 
attended to earher. 

Railways are not the only means of communication. The 
fine river Meuse passes through the province and only a certain 
outlay is needed to make it a magnificent waterway for 



The Province of Limburg 207 

large ships and steamers to as high up as Liege. But that 

part of its channel which separates Belgian and Dutch Limburg 

is precisely the part of the whole river which 

Question!^ is least useful because neglected. Most of the 

barge traf&c leaves or enters the river at 

Maestricht, one of the termini of the canals of the interior, 

while at the other end steamers never proceed above Venlo. 

Roermond in particular suffers from being left in a position 

of isolation. 

At the present time the Meuse in what may be called, for 
convenience sake, its middle course, is of very Uttle use as a 
means of communication. Yet it always presents a broad 
channel, and for six months in the year its waters run riot 
over the adjoining region. Even its comparatively modest 
tributary, the Roer, causes considerable damage by floods 
which could easily be averted or controlled, and until the 
bridge was built a few years ago at St. Odihensberg communi- 
cation with the south was often cut off or at least maintained 
only by an ancient and precarious ferry. 

What is required is very simple, and as the cost would be 

shared between Belgium and Holland, it would not be very 

. . great for either. The canaUsation of the 

of^the River, ^^^^e between Venlo and Liege has long been 
the subject of special study by engineers of 
the two countries, and it is well known that there is nothing 
extraordinarily difficult in the way of success. Were it carried 
out two objects would be attained at the same time. A 
practicable waterway for steamers and those large barges 
of 2,000 tons burden, which are so common a sight on the 
Rhine, would be created, and at the same time the floods 
would be diminished and controlled. To the unprejudiced 
onlooker it seems extraordinary that this matter has been 
so long neglected, and that no active steps have been taken to 
provide a remedy. 

A joint Belgian-Dutch Commission has been considering 
the matter for some years, and it was recently stated that they 



208 Holland of the Dutch 

had arrived at a common accord. But up to the present no 
final decision has been come to about commencing work, and 
the Limburgers remain sceptical for the present. It does not 
seem hazardous to predict that the question has reached a 
stage when action cannot be far off. The apprehensions of 
the Belgian authorities lest their railways and their great port 
of Antwerp should suffer by the diversion of some of the 
Liege trade to the river route have been allayed, because results 
everywhere have shown that the provision of increased faciUties 
for transport has only added to the volume and bulk of the 
existing trade. In other words, fresh arteries for the disposal of 
the produce of commerce and industry create such an increased 
volume of trade that there is enough transit traffic for all. 

The difference of religion was also a stumbling-block in the 
early relations of the Dutch Government with its step-daughter 

in Limburg. But the new religious tolerance, 
ToleSnce. which was firmly established fifty years ago, 

has dispelled all those clouds and ambiguities. 
The Catholic part of the country is as closely identified with 
the national existence of HoUand as the Protestant, and 
Limburg is as vital to the integrity of the State as Zeeland. 
The Cathohc diocese of Limburg is represented by the Bishop 
of Roermond and Deans of Maestricht and Venlo. The 
whole of the population, except a few immigrants from other 
provinces, is attached to the Church of Rome, and there 
are fine cathedrals and churches in the cities named. The 
Cathedral at Roermond is the old Church of the Cistercian 
order, with a lofty and beautiful steeple seen far ofi up and 
down stream, and serving as a useful beacon to mariners. 

At Maestricht there are two beautiful ancient churches, 
St. Servatius and Notre Dame. Both date from the tenth 

century, and the former claims an older age. 
^Thurlhel^"* Here is shown a room, half-way up in the 

tower, known as the Kaiser's Zaal, and 
Charlemagne is stated to have held many of his councils there. 
To many persons it has seemed to be a crypt above ground. 




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The Province of Limburg 209 

and from this point of view it is curious to note that there is a 
second crypt at the base of the same tower. Notre Dame, 
the Church of onze liewe Vrouw, is scarcely less interesting, 
with a crypt dating from the year 1010 {circa), which must 
have served as the model for the builders of the crypt at 
Battle Abbey. The present Dean of Maestricht is a most 
amiable gentleman and a learned archaeologist. The clergy 
in this region are most energetic, and take a very active interest 
in the hfe of the province, especially in the mining districts. 
It is owing to this good organisation that the Church of Rome, 
far from losing, has gained ground in this part of Holland. 

The people of Limburg speak a mixed dialect of Flemish, 
rather than Dutch, and German, and although understood 
colloquially by their neighbours on both sides, 
Language. it has many pecuUarities beyond their under- 
standing. The vehicle of instruction in the 
schools of the province is this dialect and not the Dutch 
language, and this is a grievance with the champions of 
sound national education ; but as private schools, those under 
Church direction, far exceed the State in number there is no 
ground for intervention. The standard of education in 
Limburg may not be as high as in Holland proper, but it 
seems to meet all the requirements of the people who, when 
they are not miners, are engrossed in agricultural pursuits. 

No part of Holland has made so much progress in developing 
its natural resources as Limburg. Originally the least 
developed and most backward part of the country — a region 
of marsh and moor which even Prussia did not covet at the 
time she drew her frontier along the crest of the dividing 
hills — ^it is now one of the chief grain-producing districts 
in the State, and where the land is not under cultivation 
orchards abound. 

There is another distinctive feature about Limburg. It 
possesses a petite noblesse, or squire class, which somehow or 
other, despite the changes of ruler, has managed to hold on 
to its patrimony. With the revival of prosperity through 

14— (2390) 



210 Holland of the Dutch 

the natural resources of the soil, this class has come more 
into evidence. To the ancient family tower has been added 

a handsome chateau or villa, and the grounds 
Class!^^ have been developed into the semblance 

of a park. It is not surprising to find that 
there is a certain amount of sport in this province more 
generally spread than in any other. There are plenty of 
partridge, hares, and wild duck, and the game is carefully pre- 
served. Since the opening of the mines at Heerlen poaching has 
been pretty rife, but it has been nothing hke so common as in 
Belgian Limburg, where game preservation has been practically 
abandoned in consequence of the prevalence of poaching. 

Thanks to the influence of the Church and the existence of 
the residential landlord, life in Limburg is somewhat different 
to the rest of Holland. The division into classes is more 
clearly marked. The country gentry keep to themselves, 
and do not concern themselves in trade or business. They 
lead a very simple hfe on their estates, which are never very 
large, and concern themselves with their farms and their 
shooting. Some of them go into the First Chamber, a larger 
number serve on the Provincial Councils, and others take 
an interest in the archaeological and heraldic questions which 
are the theme of the Limburg Antiquarian Society. 

Having cited these facts, which are so different from those 
upon which Dutch independence and character have been 

laised, it will not be surprising to any thinker 

The Character ^q ^g ^qI^ ^hat the Limburger is not at all Uke 

Limburger. the ordinary Netherlander. In the first place, 

he is generally short and dark in appearance 
and in disposition he is rather light-hearted and unreflective. 
Here, if nowhere else in Holland, the people sing spontaneously, 
and in the caf6s and beerhalls the silent drinker who sits in 
the dark behind a curtain in the other provinces is unknown. 
In the time of carnival the people thoroughly enjoy themselves, 
but after another fashion from the boisterous roysterer of the 
Kermesse. As Limburg has always enjoyed a peaceful 



The Province of Limburg 211 

existence it is not surprising that the people take a less 
serious view of life than men who gained their freedom through 
a series of national calamities, and who are never absolutely 
free from anxiety on the score of peril from the sea or the 
inland waters. Such cares have never beset the life of the 
Limburger, who has hved for many generations a life of ease, 
and who would not be called by any other Netherlander a 
great patriot. It may be doing him a great injustice, but 
he is looked at with a dubious eye by his fellow-countrymen ; 
and this is perhaps not so very astonishing to those who have 
heard grumblers declare we should be better off if we were 
attached to Belgium or Germany. Perhaps the grumbling 
will cease now that the Government has taken up the redress 
of the grievances on which it was chiefly based. 

Exceptional interest attaches to Limburg on account of its 
unlucky position in a mihtary or strategical sense. It lies 
between Prussia or Germany and the Meuse, 
^^1 ^i?***^^ s-J^d the undefended passages of that river 
of Limburg. 2Lt Venlo, Roermond, and Maestricht are all 
within its limits. Whenever the Germans go 
to war with France and their western neighbours, they must 
make for this part of the river to get across into Belgium 
with the idea of reaching northern France. At each of the 
places named there are two bridges — one for foot and carriage 
traffic and the other for the railway. At Maestricht and 
Roermond the bridges he at some distance apart ; at Venlo 
they are side by side. In addition there is a seventh bridge 
at Maeseyck, half-way between Maestricht and Venlo. This 
is, however, a much smaller one than the others, and has only 
a single carriage way. It is, moreover, a Belgian bridge, and 
not a Dutch, Hke the others. The bridge at Maestricht is a 
specially fine one, and was built by order of Louis XIV to 
replace one he had destroyed. He sent for the architect of 
the Pont Neuf, and ordered him to construct a rephca across 
the Meuse, which was done, as the visitor to-day may see for 
himself. 



212 HoUand of the Dutch 

Formerly it was supposed that the isolation of this province 
would never be disturbed by an invader because the roads to it 
from the East were few and badly kept. But the construction 
of the several German Hues debouching on this province 
with their full equipment of sidings for a large army has 
changed the situation, and it is now well known that Germany 
has the means of throwing by four different railway routes 
an overwhelming force upon each of the four points where 
the Meuse is bridged between the Belgian frontier and Venlo. 
The Dutch preparations for the defence of these bridges are 
inadequate — indeed, looking at the facts as they stand, they 
could not be otherwise, and at Maeseyck there are none 
whatever. 

The existing garrisons in these places are two squadrons 
of Hussars at Venlo, two squadrons of the same regiment at 
Roermond, and a mitrailleuse battery at 
Bridges.^^ Maestricht. In each place a few engineers 
are quartered for the express purpose of direct- 
ing the operations of blowing up the bridges, and it is well 
known that the explosive chambers are kept fully charged. 
It may be assumed, therefore, that all the bridges would be 
blown up, and in sufficiently good time, but whether they 
would be so seriously damaged as to require more than a few 
hours' work to make them available for the passage of troops 
is a different matter, which only the event can prove. At the 
most the Dutch can only hope to cause the invader some 
delay in getting across the Meuse. There is no serious reason 
to beheve that they could defend it for even a Httle time. 

Some changes are, however, in progress that show the 
Dutch to be more aUve to the situation than they were a few 
years ago. As stated in the Army chapter, the cavalry are 
to be withdrawn from Venlo and Roermond. Their places 
will be taken by infantry. New barracks are being erected 
at Venlo on the left bank, and a battahon of infantry is to be 
quartered there forthwith. A battery of quickfirers is also 
to be stationed there. Similar steps are to be taken at 




LIEWE VROUWENKERK (CHURCH), MAESTRICHT 



The Province of Limburg 213 

Roermond, only the barracks remain on the right bank — 
still it is hoped that the troops could get across before the 
enemy arrived. There is a more serious doubt as to whether 
the mobilisation of the landwehr of the province could be 
effected in time. Part of it has to rally on Sittard, and other 
battaUons are attached to Venlo and Roermond. It is to be 
feared that in face of a sudden irruption this part of the 
landwehr would be broken up and scattered before it took 
form as a fighting force. In Limburg the Dutch defensive 
position is necessarily very exposed, and radically weak. It 
is one that could not be much improved. The utmost that 
may be looked for is the timely and effective destruction of 
the bridges and the safe withdrawal of the troops, including 
the landwehr. 



CHAPTER XXIII 

THE CITY OF AMSTERDAM 

When one happens to have seen a good deal of Holland 
without having had occasion to visit Amsterdam, the reproach 
of Dutch friends takes the form, " But until you have seen 
Amsterdam you have seen nothing of our country." It may 
at once be admitted that the statement is true. Amsterdam 
is the unique embodiment of the country's greatness, the one 
Dutch city that leaves an ineffaceable impression ; when other 
scenes have faded away that presented by the Venice of the 
North recurs to the mind without an effort. The vision is not 
the less clear because the original is so often shrouded in 
mist, and indeed it may be doubted whether the weather is 
ever so absolutely clear as to allow of a comprehensive view 
of the city, but in Amsterdam the impression arises from 
detached bits which may be multipHed a hundredfold. 

The origin of this city was humble and not very ancient. 
It got its name as a dam on the Amstel stream early in the thir- 
teenth century, but it was only a fishing village 
if^Namf. ^^^^ WiUiam IV, Count of Holland, granted it 
civic rights in 1340. The discovery of a City 
seal with the date 1350 is strong confirmatory evidence of the 
grant of a charter. It was only converted into a walled city 
at the close of the Burgundian epoch, and it was one of the 
last cities of the Netherlands to join the League against Spain. 
From that time it acquired importance very rapidly, and be- 
came the chief centre of national power. It was the seat 
of the Dutch India Company, and its celebrated Bank was one 
of the most important financial institutions in Europe during 
the two hundred years of its existence. But the event which 
assured the prosperity of Amsterdam was the closing of the 
Scheldt in the year 1648 by the Treaty of Munster, which 

214 



The City of Amsterdam 215 

prevented all competition on the part of its great rival of 
Antwerp. For over two hundred years Amsterdam enjoyed 
this favoured position, and that period represents its prime. 

Whether the stream gave its name to the family or the 

family its name to the stream, the Amstel, a small stream 

flowing into the Y, a bay of the Zuyder Zee, 

The Amstel. witnessed the first growth of the city under 
Baron Gisbert of Amstel, a friend of the 
Bishop of Utrecht. This was in the year 1204, and the dam 
constructed to protect it from floods is supposed to have 
stood on the open square which to-day bears this name. As 
the city grew a protecting canal was thrown round it, the 
base always resting as now upon the Y. The first of these 
canals was the Amstel itself. Then in their order come the 
Heeren gracht, the Kaiser's gracht, and the Prinsen gracht — 
gracht meaning canal. The outermost of all the grachts is 
called the Singel, or " the girdle." The water in the canals 
is supposed to be changed once in every twenty-four hours 
by the action of centrifugal pumps carrying off the stale water 
into the North Sea Canal, and replacing it with fresh from the 
Zuyder Zee. Dredgers are also constantly at work, and it 
is contended that all risk of emanations is thus avoided. 
A new system of fiUing in some of the minor canals which are 
practically useless has been tried, and finds increasing favour, 
for in many of the side canals, some forming cut de sacs, the 
water stagnates, and the picturesqueness of the Achterburg- 
wal, for instance, is often unable to detain the visitor who has 
a powerful sense of smell. 

These are the water walls of the city. Then across them 
run diagonally other minor canals, and it is thus reckoned that 
Amsterdam stands on ninety isles, connected with each other 
by a great number of bridges which are generally fixed at 300, 
but which probably are more numerous. In fact one French 
authority, who includes all the little passerelles, which he took 
the trouble to count, places them as high as a thousand. 
As the larger canals are filled with ships, and the smaller ones 



216 Holland of the Dutch 

with barges and boats, the city gives the impression of being 
half sea and half land. Nor is this diminished by the fact that 
some of the canals have on one side a fashionable street, and 
on the other the hmnble and redolent homes of fishers and 
sailors. 

Amsterdam, therefore, rose out of the waters, and the 
extraordinary manner in which its creators toiled to give it 

an artificial stabiUty deserves our admiration, 
on Piles!* At the best the spot selected was marshland, 

and even after the deposit of peat, sand and 
stone the soil remained spongy and without solid bottom. 
There was no foundation whatever for permanent buildings 
in stone and brick. How did the first citizens of Amsterdam 
solve the problem ? They sank piles into the mud, and some 
of them were not less than 80 feet in length, and thus they 
obtained a foundation for their buildings. As an example 
it may be mentioned that the Palace of the Dam stands on 
14,000 piles. The question has often been asked whether 
Amsterdam or at least some part of it may not collapse into 
the waters from which it emerged, and certainly the appear- 
ance of many of the houses in the older streets which lean 
greatly out of the perpendicular suggests that the thing is 
possible. But as the city has existed in its present form for 
three centuries — and it may be observed parenthetically that 
the outer suburbs stand on firmer ground — there does not 
seem much reason for apprehension. Occasionally the road- 
way breaks through under a heavily charged wagon, but it is 
promptly repaired and strengthened. There is apparently 
no serious menace to the existence of the city as long as the 
great dam at Halfweg remains firm, and it is the special 
charge of a picked detachment of the Waterstaat Department. 
In olden days Amsterdam was fortified just hke other places. 
It had walls, ramparts, and strong gates, the canals serving 
as fosses. But all these fortifications have been removed 
and in their places have arisen fine boulevards flanked by 
avenues of trees and handsome houses. Only one gateway. 




H 
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The City of Amsterdam 217 

the Muiderpoort, has been preserved as a monument of the 
past. But notwithstanding the removal of its apparent means 

of defence Amsterdam is one of the strongest 
of the^ C?ty ^ ^^^ "^°^* skilfully fortified places in Europe. 

The water which was baffled and harnessed 
for its use in the time of its building has been cunningly 
converted into the most important agent and contributory 
towards its effective defence against a human enemy. Only 
the rear seems weak, or rather its security depends on the 
Helder fortress and the co-operation of the fleet. 

The following sketch of the more animated part of the city 
is from the pen of a French writer (F. Bernard) : " The 

Square called the Dam is the true centre of 

Amsterdam. *^^ ^^^5^' ^^^ ^^^^ ^* radiate the principal 
and most crowded streets. Here is the 
Church of St. Catherine, called also the New Church, although 
it was built in the fifteenth century. Not far off is the Old 
Church, dedicated to St. Nicholas, and dating from the year 
1300 or thereabouts. Amsterdam contains altogether some 
fifty churches, most of which belong to the different divisions 
of Protestantism. There are also a good many synagogues. 
Among buildings devoted to civil purposes are first the Royal 
Palace of the Dam (formerly the Hotel de Ville) , built in the 
years 1648-55, surmounted by a cupola and a tower nearly 
70 feet high ; the Exchange, a modern building ornamented 
with an Ionic porch ; the old Admiralty building now the 
Town Hall ; the Bank ; the University ; the Hotel of the 
Royal Academy, the Law Courts, the Fish Market, the 
Central Railway Station, the weighing house of St. Anthony, 
and finally the great National Museum situated on an islet 
in the Y itself." 

A few words on some of these centres of interest, taken 
separately, will not be out of place. The Dam Palace, first 
converted into a royal abode from a Town Hall in the year 
1767, I think, and restored to the City of Amsterdam by 
Louis Napoleon, is a fine building with a magnificent reception 



218 Holland of the Dutch 

room or salon d'honneur, constructed in white Carrara marble. 

Its fa9ade contains more than one hundred windows, but 

the entrance is so insignificant that it has been 

^pLi^!" ^^^^d "*^^ ^^^^^ without a door." On 

the opposite side of the square is the Exchange, 

with a portico supported by seventeen columns, and some 

Dutch wags have called it by contrast with the Palace, " a door 

without a house/' 

It is in the Dam Palace that the Sovereign passes a week, 
as the City's guest, in the month of June, and the reUgious 
ceremony accompanying the coronation or inauguration 
takes place in the New Church close to it. In front of the 
Palace is the monument known as the Iron Cross, erected to 
the memory of the Dutch soldiers who fell during the Belgian 
Revolution. The Exchange or Bourse is said to be still the 
centre of the largest transactions in grain and colonial produce 
on the Contiaent. As a rule it is closed after business hours, 
but during the week of Kermesse it is opened after 3 o'clock 
each day to serve as a playground for the city children. This 
privilege is said to be due to the discovery by some youths of 
Amsterdam of a plot by the Spaniards to blow up the Old 
Bourse. This happened in the year 1622. 

If the Dam is one centre of interest, the Port is that of 
another not less attractive or appeahng. It was formed 
by the construction of a granite quay along 
The Port. the face of three mud-banks, sometimes mag- 
nified with the title of islands, and two 
enormous dykes and locks protect it against incursions on 
the part of the Zuyder Zee. The port is divided into three 
docks or basins, the whole being capable of providing for a 
thousand steamers at a time. At the eastern extremity of 
the port is the Government Arsenal and dockyard. There 
are also bmlding yards for merchantmen and for all sizes of 
barges. In close proximity to the Docks, in fact between 
those of the West and the East, is the Central Railway Sta- 
tion, a fine building, now standing alone and approached 



The City of Amsterdam 219 

from the city by a broad bridge. Opposite to it is the quay, 
from which sails the Httle steamer for Marken. At another 
part of the Port is the Weeping Tower, or Schregers-toren, 
where the women used to assemble to say good-bye to the 
departing sailors. On the wall is an iron bas-relief showing 
a ship and the figure of a woman weeping with the date 
1569. 

In sharp contrast with the grey and grimy waters of the 

harbour and the canals, and the dark exterior, half damp, 

half smoke, of the houses, are the green 

Amsterdam ° verdure and bright parterres of flowers in 
the twin islets called the Plantaadije. They 
are joined together by several bridges, and contain between 
them a park, the Zoological and the Botanical Gardens, and 
a picturesque and well-shaded promenade, where the society 
of the city takes the air when it is fine. This oasis forms a 
most welcome contrast to the rest of the city. The Botanical 
Garden contains many rare plants and flowers from the Dutch 
Indies, and the Zoological Gardens are considered one of the 
three best in Eiu"ope. They are managed under the auspices 
of a private society or club numbering twenty thousand 
members. While the Plantaadije has long existed in what 
may be called the heart of the town every expansion outwards 
has been attended by the reservation of some open spaces, 
and the Vondel Park, near the Singel Canal, is a fine instance 
in point. 

Unfortunately the new suburbs are especially designed for 
the well-to-do, and bring no reHef to the overcrowding in 
some of the older parts of the city. A large part of the 
poorer population hve in the cellars and under conditions 
that would not satisfy a sanitary inspector. Some of the 
side streets which have only a narrow pavement between 
the houses and the canal are exceedingly repellent in appear- 
ance, and to the casual visitor the marvel is that so few 
children are drowned, as the sides of the canals are quite 
unprotected. 



220 Holland of the Dutch 

The Jewish quarter of the town, or Ghetto, is supposed to 
be the dirtiest part of it, but if it is any satisfaction to the 

social reformer, it is not nearly so dirty as it 
The Ghetto, was, for, as some one has expressed it, it is 

now putting on a new skin. In this quarter 
there are few canals, and the houses, six or seven stories high, 
are closely packed together, while inside each house is as 
closely packed with human beings. It is beHeved that there 
are 60,000 Jews in the Ghetto, and that the accommodation 
is only adequate for 10,000 people. The mass of this people 
— a race apart — live in the greatest poverty amid filth and 
squalor that appals the imagination ; but, on the other hand, 
the diamond workers, who receive high wages, and who possess 
a monopoly shared with their brethren of Antwerp alone, are 
all Jews, and dwell in the Ghetto. They are among the most 
prosperous members of the whole community, and earn about 
four miUions sterHng a year. Prosperity and poverty, there- 
fore, rub elbows in the Ghetto, but the really wealthy Jewish 
families are to be found in the new suburbs. As has already 
been observed, the Jews furnish the majority of the singers 
of Holland. In the Ghetto also are several synagogues. 
That of the Portuguese Jews, who have always been more 
prosperous than the others, is especially magnificent, claiming 
to represent the Temple of Solomon. 

The people of Amsterdam have always been noted for their 
benevolence, and several interesting charitable institutions 

have long been maintained by the city itself. 
InltiStioil Wh^n Louis XIV was preparing to invade 

Holland he wrote to his ally Charles II, who, as 
an exile, had experienced Dutch hospitality, " Have no fear 
for Amsterdam ; I have the firm hope that Providence will 
save her if it were only in consideration of her charity towards 
the poor." Amsterdam was saved on that occasion, but 
only by the resolution of her citizens in cutting the dykes and 
flooding the country. 
The most important of these institutions is the Orphanage 



The City of Amsterdam 221 

for the Children of Amsterdam Citizens, which has been in 
existence for several centuries. It is an entirely honourable 
institution, and inflicts no slur on its inmates, who receive 
a careful education, and are then provided with a start in 
life conformable to their station and capacity. Whilst at 
the Orphanage they enjoy the special protection and even 
the affection of the citizens, who easily recognise them by 
their quaint costume, one half red and the other black, but 
this parti-colour was adopted simply because they were the 
colours of the city, and not at all to make them more easily 
recognisable. Still it is a law of the city that innkeepers and 
pubhcans must not serve them with drink, and that the 
railway clerks must not supply them with tickets lest they 
should be attempting to quit the city to which they are held 
bound. The Orphanage possesses an excellent choir, which 
takes part in all civic functions, and when the first stone of a 
monument is laid it is placed in position by chosen representa- 
tives of the city's orphans. Among the pupils of this institu- 
tion was Van Speyk, whose act of heroism was described in 
the chapter on the Navy. 

The benevolent institutions cover a wide range and 
include a home for unemployed sailors. The Institute for 
the Bhnd, one of the first of its kind in Europe, was estabhshed 
over a century ago. It has served as a model for other similar 
institutions, and the pubHc are invited once a week to be 
present while instruction is being given. Candidates are 
admitted from the age of five ; and on attaining the age of 
eighteen, if employment has not been found for them, they 
are passed on to a Home for Bhnd Adults, which is of more 
recent origin. Among a hundred other institutions may be 
named the Catholic Hospital of St. James, and the Hospital 
for the Aged. 

Great as Amsterdam has been as a seat of commerce, it 
may be questioned whether the possession of its unique art 
treasures does not give it a still higher place among the cities 



222 Holland of the Dutch 

of the world. The Rijks or State Museum occupies a fine 

new building in the southern quarter of the town, specially 

erected to provide a suitable home for the 
The Art 
Galleries. great treasures which have become a national 

heirloom. It covers one side of a little island, 

or insel, as it is called, which is to be specially reserved 

for pubUc buildings, and which is situated in the Singel 

gracht. Every precaution has been taken to secure the 

building against fire, and after closing hours it still remains 

the object of the closest vigilance. 

There may be finer and more representative, in a cosmo- 
poUtan sense, collections in the world, but as a national gallery 
in the sense that it contains only the works of the painters 
of the Netherlands, it is unsurpassed. Here may be seen the 
masterpieces of Rembrandt and Van der Heist, Gerard 
Douw, and Van Steen, Frans Hals, and Brouwer, Cuyp and 
Ruisdael, Potter and Metzu, Hobbema and Karel du Jardin 
— in short, not a name seems to be absent from the galaxy 
of genius which made the Dutch school the most famous in 
Europe after the ItaUan. 

Nor does the State Museum stand alone. There are many 
other galleries, of which perhaps the Van der Hoop collection 
is the largest and best known, and there are few pubhc build- 
ings, including the old hospitals, that do not contain one or 
several masterpieces. But the same characteristic distin- 
guishes them all. They are the works of national painters, 
although here and there the Flemish school of Van Eyck, 
Rubens, and Vandyke is borrowed from or absorbed as 
quasi-national, and equally typical of the Netherlands. 

Amsterdam has its University, which ranks high as a scien- 
tific centre, and boasts an excellent library which is not 
hmited to works of science. Among its most 
L^nlng.° treasured possessions, for instance, is a copy 
of Caesar's De Bello Gallico, of the tenth 
century, a beautiful specimen of ecclesiastical caligraphy. 




Q 
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o 

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The City of Amsterdam 223 

It is also the centre of the pubhshing trade of Holland, and 
the system of book dehvery throughout the country which is 
excellent, both as regards simpHcity and celerity of despatch, 
radiates from it. Thanks to this arrangement, the cheapest 
books and even pamphlets can be sent to the outlying towns 
without any additional cost. There is another society which 
seeks to guide public taste into the right channels by indicating 
the best works for the less educated classes of society, and by 
holding periodical examinations of a popular and attractive 
character, and by giving prizes and other rewards to those 
who show that they have most profited by their reading. 
Amsterdam is also the place of pubhcation of the chief journals 
and periodical pubhcations. 

The growth of Amsterdam from a position of comparative 

unimportance to that of an European centre of commerce 

and influence was largely due to the considera- 

Amsterdam.^ tion it showed to ahen races who were the 
victims of persecution in their own country. 
First among these were Belgian immigrants, who fled to Holland 
at the beginning of the Spanish Inquisition, and whose distinct 
community is visible to-day in the existence of what is known 
as the Walloon Church. Then came the Jews from Portugal 
about 1580, and they also preserve their separate identity. 
Nimierically these additions were not great, and a far larger 
contingent came with the French Protestants after the Revo- 
cation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685. These Huguenots, 
unhke the other races, became absorbed in the Dutch nation, 
but their advent explains the prevalence of family names in 
Holland which are obviously of French origin. Finally, the 
Jewish community was mainly built up by fugitives from 
different outbreaks of Juden-Hetze, in Germany, during the 
eighteenth century. Amsterdam has benefited in many 
respects from this hereditary poHcy of " the open door." 

There are many clubs in Amsterdam, but all seem to rely on 
some more binding association than mere social foregathering. 



224 HoUand of the Dutch 

Art, or Letters, or Theology, are the prominent features 
in such institutions as Arti et Amicitioe, Fehx Meritis, and 
Doctrina et Amicitia — the Dutch fancy for 
Clubs. Latin titles is proverbial — but they are none 
the less clubs with a well-deserved reputation 
for hospitahty. Their serious purpose is to promote the 
special art or science that figures in their programmes, and 
they do so by a generous support of concerts, pubUc read- 
ings, and the benevolent institutions connected with the 
particular professions concerned. 

But the greatest of all these societies is that known as The 
Society of PubUc UtiUty, which was founded as long ago as 
the year 1784. The membership is very large — perhaps 
20,000 members divided into 300 groups, and the annual 
subscription of five florins brings in a revenue that is largely 
supplemented by the interest derived from the accumulated 
savings passed into the reserve fund. Its affairs, which are 
of many categories, are administered by a Board composed 
of ten Directors and a General Secretary. 

In all the essentials of a great city and capital, Amsterdam 
stands first beyond question in Holland. Its hotels and 
A Great C'tv restaurants are far superior to those at The 
Hague, the shops are also finer, and the 
streets more animated than in the legislative capital. Early 
in the evening a great part of The Hague seems deserted ; 
this is never the case at Amsterdam. There are not many 
theatres in Holland, taken as a whole, and a good proportion 
of them must be in this city. Concerts are frequently given, 
even music-halls with variety entertainments can be discov- 
ered, and bands play in the pubUc gardens and in the Plan- 
taadije during the summer. Although the city covers a much 
larger area than formerly, the facihties for getting about have 
so greatly increased by the extension of the tram system which 
now serves all parts of the city, that residents in the remote 
suburbs beyond the Singel can get there in ten minutes or 



The City of Amsterdam 225 

so from the Dam, which is regarded as the central or starting- 
point for the whole of the tram service. Amsterdam has 
grown a great deal of recent years, but it has not done growing 
yet, and a great impetus to its prosperity may be expected 
when the deepening of the North Sea Canal now in progress 
has been brought to completion. 



13— (2390) 



CHAPTER XXIV 

THE ZUYDER ZEE 

From every point of view the inland sea or gulf of the Zuyder 
Zee is one of the most striking features in the conformation 
of Holland. It represents the greatest triumph of the ocean 
at the expense of the mainland of Europe since historical 
records began ; yet it cannot be doubted by any one acquain- 
ted with the patient persistency of Dutch character and their 
skill in hydraulic science that it is destined to disappear as a 
sea, and to resume its ancient form of a lake of modest dimen- 
sions. When this has been accomphshed the Dutch will 
have achieved their greatest triumph over their ancient foe, 
the relentless ocean. 

The Dutch poet Da Costa appealed to the deepest feelings 
of his feUow-countrymen when he wrote the Hues — 

" Oh ! Nederland ! What vast waters have often crossed thy bosom. 
Those of Southern rivers, and of the Northern Ocean." 

It can scarcely be doubted that he was thinking of those 
two great inrushes of the sea which first in 11 77 and then finally 

Lake Flevo ^^ 1*2^2 severed the connection by land 
between North Holland and Frisia, thus 
sweeping away all earth barriers until it mingled its waters 
with those of Lake Flevo. How many cities were destroyed, 
how many lives were lost, there are no trustworthy records 
to tell, but the fishermen of the Zuyder Zee have often 
reported that at the bottom of the water they could see the 
tops of buildings and church steeples. Tacitus mentions Lake 
Flevo, and by all accounts the isthmus between Holland and 
Frisia was productive and weU peopled at the time of the 
inundation. 

When the sea had broken through and forced its way to the 
southern shore, creating among other fresh inlets, the Gulf 

226 



The Zuyder Zee 227 

of Y, on which the port of Amsterdam now stands, the ravages 
it committed were far from being exhausted. It brought with 
it sand and other debris, which gradually choked up many of 
the ports that had sprung into being, while the dreaded 
pampus, the scum as it were of the rotting verdure and 
vegetation below, threatened to put an end to all navigation 
across its surface. Thus the effects of the inundation proved 
permanent and even recurrent, for the flourishing port of 
one century became dereUct in the next. Perhaps the most 
striking case was that of Stavoren, and the legend attached to 
its decay is worth recaUing. 

Stavoren, pronounced " Staroom " — a name derived from 
the god Stavo, the Thor of the Frisians — was in old days 
the capital of the Frisian kings, and after the 
Stavoren. inundation it still remained the most flourish- 
ing port of the inland sea, for from it was 
exported the abundant produce of the fertile province behind 
it to the then poorer and less favoured region of the Countdom 
of Holland. It is said that at the height of their prosperity 
the inhabitants used to gild their doors and even their kitchen 
utensils, but perhaps the story is only meant to show the 
greatness of their prosperity and their love of ostentation. 
The women of Frisia were ever known for their independence 
and self-rehance — so it is not surprising to find that in the 
fourteenth century, when the incident happened, some figured 
among the richest merchants of Stavoren. One of them 
fitted out a vessel with a rich cargo, and sent it to Danzig, 
instructing the captain to bring back the best return cargo 
he could obtain. The unlucky captain filled his ship with 
com, which was hke taking coals to Newcastle, for Frisia 
grew it in abundance. When he arrived at Stavoren the lady 
asked what he had brought back, and on hearing the reply 
" Grain," she became furious — perhaps she expected sables 
from Russia — and without reflecting exclaimed at once 
** Throw it into the sea." The order was obeyed, but soon the 
entrance to the port was blocked with a sand-bank and 



228 Holland of the Dutch 

submarine growths, and from that time Stavoren decUned in 
prosperity until it sank to a humble village with a few hundred 
inhabitants. As the obstructing barrier is called the Vrouwen- 
sand — the Woman's Sand-bank — who can doubt the truth 
of the legend ? 

Having lost the land, the Dutch, with their thoroughly 
practical views, turned their attention to making the most 
of the outlet to the open sea with which they 
as it^i^.^ ^^ ^^^ ^^^^ suddenly provided. The same 
water that demohshed the isthmus made 
Amsterdam a seaport for the first time. The Zuyder Zee 
itself bore the fleets of war and the argosies of commerce 
from the sixteenth to the eighteenth century, and the upper- 
most care of the authorities was to keep a fairway open among 
the shifting sands and the encroaching pampus. The former 
were prevented from closing the channel by constant dredging, 
and the latter was regularly harvested during the summer 
months of each year. 

One of the sights of the Zuyder Zee used to be to watch 
the harvesters in their flat-bottom boats raking up the new 
crop that had sprung up under the water. 
Pampus. ^^^ process was slow, but the yield was im- 
mense, and this wadden, or rotten grain, 
made an excellent land fertiliser. But notwithstanding the 
ceaseless efforts of a large band of gatherers, more especially 
men from the poor province of Drenthe, the pampus sometimes 
formed itself into a solid mass, and bore down towards the 
Y, threatening to close the entrance to Amsterdam. On 
such occasions quite a fleet of boats, punts and fishing smacks, 
saUied forth from all the ports of the surrounding provinces 
to attack, break up, and carry off the encroaching vegetation, 
lest it should put an end to navigation as the sudd has done 
on the Upper Nile. Nor has this contest been relaxed since 
the construction of the two sea canals, north and west of the 
city, gave Amsterdam new avenues to the sea, for the Zuyder 
2^e continued to be the scene of much commercial activity, 



The Zuyder Zee 229 

although large steamers and ships ceased to pass over its 
surface. Besides it is one of the great fishing grounds at the 
exclusive command of the Dutch people, and a large part 
of the population inhabiting the shores of the gulf draw the 
sources of their hving from its depths. For their sake the 
pampus has to be kept at arm's length, and occasionally 
dispersed by violent measures. 

Considering its origin, it is not surprising that many legends 
have passed into currency about places which have been called 
not inaptly " the dead cities of the Zuyder 
Legends Zee." The legend of Stavoren has been told ; 
that of Edam on the opposite shore of North 
Holland, will interest the reader. Edam, now famous for the 
best of Dutch cheeses, was in old days a fishing or trading 
port like the rest. Many years ago, but still after the irruption 
of the sea, some young women of the place walking on the 
shore encountered a strange being. She seemed Hke a woman, 
young and beautiful, yet covered with sea-weed, and she was 
swimming in the water. They spoke to her, and although 
their tongues were quite different, they induced her to land 
and to accompany them home. There they scraped off the 
sea-weed, put her into clothes, and in time taught her to spin 
Uke any other Dutch woman. She remained with them some 
time — in legend dates are never very precise — but whenever 
she saw the sea she always tried to enter it, and at last she 
made her escape, dived into the water, and was seen or heard 
of no more. The water nymph of Edam is one of the fairy 
m5rths of Holland, but at the place itself it is perilous to be 
incredulous ; for is not the whole story set out in bas-relief 
on the little town hall ? Those critics who love to destroy 
the supernatural aver that it was only a seal, and certainly 
the sea brought many seal colonies into the gulf where they 
long made their homes. 

There are at least four islands in this sea that have been or 
are still inhabited. They are Marken, Wieringen, Urk, and 
Schokland. Of these Wieringen is the largest. It lies at the 



230 Holland of the Dutch 

entrance to the Zuyder Zee, some distance east of the Helder, 
and is called upon to play an important part in its proposed 

reclamation. Urk lies in the centre of the 
Islands. ^^^ about half-way between Enkhuisen and 

Kampen. It still is occupied by a few famiUes 
of fishermen, who share it with a colony of seals. So was 
Schokland, but about seventy years ago the sea encroached 
so steadily that the inhabitants became afraid and beat a 
retreat to the mainland. Schokland is now much favoured 
by the seals who remain in undisputed possession. Of course, 
Marken is another island in this sea, but it has been described 
in an earHer chapter. Here it need only be mentioned that 
when the reclamation scheme is carried out it will cease to be 
an island, and that it will rejoin once more the mainland from 
which it was severed so long ago. 

The idea of reclaiming the Zuyder Zee is about 100 years 

old, and in that period many distinct projects have been put 

The Earlier forward for its realisation. Some of these 

Schemes of were extremely ambitious ; others were 

Reclamation, proportionally modest. The former were 

not feasible ; the latter did not ensure an adequate result. 

Some Dutch enthusiasts imagined that draining the Zuyder 

Zee could be carried out in something like the way that the 

Haarlem lake had been, and they proposed the rejoining of 

North Holland and Friesland as if it were a mere trifle. These 

views, to which he attached too high an infallibility, were 

still in favour when Signor de Amicis wrote the following 

paragraph — 

"... Stavoren, the most advanced point on this coast of Friesland 
and Medembhjk, another decayed city of North Holland, which was 
the capital of the province before the foundation of Hoorn and Enk- 
huizen. At that point the gulf is about half as wide as the straits of 
Calais. When the gigantic undertaking for the draining of the Zuyder 
Zee shall be carried into effect, it is at this point that the enormous 
dyke will be placed which is to keep out the North Sea. The dyke 
will extend from Stavoren to Medembhjk, leaving in the middle a wide 
canal for the movement of the tides, and the flowing off of the waters 
of the Yssel and the Vecht ; and behind it the great gulf will be 



The Zuyder Zee 231 

gradually transformed into a fertile plain. North Holland will be joined 
to Friesland, all the dead cities of the coast will be revived and animated 
with new life, islands destroyed, manners and customs changed, dialects 
commingled, a province, a people, and world created." 

This was the old scheme, or rather the latest of them. It 

was put forward in 1848 by Mr. Froger, a well-known engineer 

. . of the day, although his claim to originating 

^of °i8m.^ ^^^ ^^ ^^^ contested by Messrs. Kloppenburg & 
Fadechon ; but as it has been abandoned, 
the old rivalry possesses no importance. In 1882 a Society 
of the Zuyder Zee was formed at Amsterdam, and by its 
efforts a technical commission was appointed by the Govern- 
ment in 1890 to examine it and several other proposals. 
They reported against them all and the particular one referred 
to in the passage just quoted was condemned as absolutely 
impracticable. Before separating, however, the Commission 
considered an entirely new project, and after examining it 
from every point of view pronounced it to be feasible, and well 
worth taking in hand on the ground of national advantage. 
The author of this plan was Major van der Veur, of the Dutch 
Artillery, and it is known as " the official plan of 1892." 

Before giving the details of the plan some peculiarities of 

the sea may be mentioned. Although the navigable channel 

attains in some places, more especially at the 

p ^r"^%' entrance between North Holland and Wie- 
of the Sea. ringen, a depth of 25 feet, the average depth 
of the sea over the greater part of its surface 
is no more than 5 feet. Therefore the tj^ical boat of the 
Zuyder Zee is the one-masted " hotter," the draught of which 
does not exceed 3 feet, although it possesses a capacity of 
25 tons. It is also worthy of note that the effect of the tide 
is hardly felt, but although the sea is sluggish it is so absolutely 
unprotected by hills or mountains that it receives all the winds 
that blow, and is consequently seldom calm. Sometimes a 
gale on the Zuyder Zee is no trifling affair. There is another 
pecuUarity. The water is almost fresh, due to the fact that 
six rivers contribute much more towards feeding it than the 



232 Holland of the Dutch 

open sea. The rivers are the Kuinder, Linde, Zwarte Cooter, 
Yssel, Eem, and Vecht. Finally, it may be remarked that the 
whole of its coast is dyked, at some places so formidably, 
e.g., Stavoren and Harlingen, that the towns themselves cannot 
be seen from a ship on the sea. These precautions, it may 
be mentioned, are part of the Dutch system, for since the great 
overflow in the thirteenth century the ocean has not made 
any fresh encroachment, and the Zuyder Zee remains very 
much as it was then. Its sand-banks have blocked the 
ports, but at the same time have arrested the inroads of 
the sea. 

The Zuyder Zee has an area of 5,000 square kilometres ; 
its greatest length from north to south is 138 kilometres, 
and its greatest breadth from west to east 87 
o/^r^Sea! kilometres. In Enghsh measures these figures 
read in their order : 1,932 square miles for 
area, 86 miles for greatest length, and 54 miles for greatest 
breadth. The Zuyder Zee represents, therefore, about 
1,236,480 acres, and the official plan contemplates the reclama- 
tion of about 800,000 acres, leaving the remainder to form a 
central lake oblong in form. 

The new plan differs from all its predecessors in fixing the 

outer barrier against the sea at a point far more to the north 

than was ever conceived to be possible. In 

t^New^Plan. ^^ery previous project the western starting- 
point has always been Enkhuizen, wherever 
the eastern might be fixed, and it varied from points as far 
south as Kampen, and as far north as Stavoren. But the plan 
as it may now be called, makes Envyck, on the mainland 
near the Anna Paulovna polder, and at the southern entrance 
of the Amsteldiep channel, the starting-point on the west of 
the great dyke which is to shut out the North Sea. This dyke 
is to be constructed between Envyck and the island of Wie- 
ringen, and represents the first stage in the great undertaking. 
It is proposed that it should be taken in hand first as a separate 
work, which can be brought to completion without committing 



The Zuyder Zee 233 

the Government irrevocably to the second and larger portion 
of the enterprise. It is estimated that the cost of this dyke 
alone would be 60 milUon francs (£2,400,000), and that it would 
require nine years to complete. 

As one of the consequences of the scheme would be to open 
a new door by land to an enemy advancing against Amster- 
dam, for of course the Helder position does 
Wieringen. not command the Friesland coast, it would 
be necessary to fortify Wieringen, so that it 
might protect the whole of the channel lying east of it. Part 
of the first project is, therefore, the conversion of this island 
into a thoroughly up-to-date fortress with cupola bomb-proof 
forts, but although estimates are usually exceeded, it is believed 
that the sixty miUions would cover the expense of fortifying 
Wieringen. 

The second dyke from Wieringen to the coast of Friesland, 

at Piaan, north of Stavoren, is of course the larger part of 

^, „ , the undertaking, and the plan specifies with 

The Second , • • j • j I i i, * 

Dyke. great precision and copious details how it 

would require thirty-three years more, after 
the Amsteldiep channel had been closed, and a further outlay 
of 667 million francs to bring it to completion. The first dyke 
would be not more than 4 miles in length, while the second 
would be not less than 15 miles. As some set off to this it 
may be noted that the Amsteldiep channel is deeper and more 
rapid than the eastern, and broader channel, but of course this 
view may have to be modified when the dyke from Envyck 
bars the Amsteldiep channel. 

The dykes are to be made of unexampled solidity. In 
the first place, a foundation of loose granite blocks is to be 
deposited and allowed to solidify. When 
of Locks. ^ sufiicient interval has elapsed the super- 
structure will be raised on it. The rampart 
will be composed chiefly of clay and basalt mixed, supple- 
mented at many points with blocks of granite. The dyke 
will have five groups of locks, each group will contain six 



234 Holland of the Dutch 

separate locks arranged longitudinally, and the top of the dyke 
is to be no more than six feet across, so that it may not be 
available for carriage traffic. It is said as a reason for this 
that carriage traffic would tend to wear out the dyke, but it 
is easy to imagine why the Dutch do not wish to facihtate 
the crossing from shore to shore. Therefore, it is strictly 
laid down that the top of the dyke shall not be more than 6 feet 
broad. 

The height of the dyke between Envyck and Wieringen is 

to be 5*20 metres (17 ft. nearly) above the mean height of the 

water of the Y at Amsterdam. The second 

the^Dykes. dyke is to be sHghtly higher. The height 

from Wieringen to Piaan will be 5*60 ms. 

(over 18 feet). These altitudes are considered to place the 

dyke in a position of absolute security against the highest 

tides and the wildest storms that may come from the North 

Sea. 

With regard to the land reclaimed, which may be estimated 
at about 800,000 acres, the plan proposes the formation of 
four new polders. These will be known as 
Reclaimed. *^^ polders of the north-west, the south-west, 
the north-east, and the south-east. The 
north-west will be between Envyck and Enkhuizen, and the 
south-west between Oosterleek and the mainland behind 
Marken, the island being absorbed in it. Both these polders 
will be additions to the province of North Holland. The 
north-east polder will extend from Stavoren to Keteldiep, 
and will be an addition to Friesland and Drenthe, mainly 
the latter. The south-east polder will extend from Kampen 
to Huizen, and will be an addition mainly to Gelderland. 
These polders will be placed in trust and worked on a system 
analogous to that in the Beemster polder. It seems reasonable 
to conclude that the reclaimed land will meet the whole of the 
expense of reclamation. 

The average value of polder land in Holland is £100 per 
acre, which would give a total value of 80 milhons sterling 



The Zuyder Zee 235 

for the reclaimed portion of the Zuyder Zee. On the other 
hand, the total outlay would be under twenty-nine miUions. 

Some allowance must be made for the loss 
Land. from the contraction or cessation of the fishing 

in the Zuyder Zee, but as it has greatly 

declined and in some years is absolutely unproductive, the 

fishermen of Marken would soon become reconciled to the 

disappearance of their miniature archipelago when they found 

more profitable and assured employment at their doors. 

Finally, it is understood that as soon as the present work 

on the deepening of the North Sea Canal has been finished, a 

commencement will be made with the first 
DatB of 
Commencement. P^^* ^^ ^^^ undertaking between Envyck 

and Wieringen, but it is a big undertaking, 
and in Holland the beginning is always slow. The Dutch 
like to look at a thing a very long time before getting to 
work. All that can be said in this case is that they have 
been looking at it a long while. Even the new plan is 
twenty years old. 

It might, perhaps, be well if the Dutch people were to enlist 
the assistance of foreign capitalists in this great and promising 
undertaking, so that the dates of commencement and comple- 
tion might both be hastened. It can scarcely be doubted that 
it would be forthcoming. Holland has now become so thickly 
populated and the population is so steadily increasing that 
more elbow-room is wanted, and nowhere could it be furnished 
with greater advantage to the people and the country than in 
the heart of the kingdom which at present centres in a watery 
waste, of no value as either sea or land. 



CHAPTER XXV 

NATIONAL CHARACTERISTICS AND SOME TYPES 

Nations, generally speaking, form a summary judgment of 

their neighbours, and laying hold of one tendency that strikes 

, their own imagination or appeals to their 
Slowness and • t ■, v 

Caution. prejudices more than any other, attribute it 

as the distinguishing characteristic to one 
another. Thus, the general opinion among Englishmen of 
the Dutch people is that they are slow and cautious. They 
also, in that superb insularity of self-esteem which puts them- 
selves on a plane apart from the mere foreigner, have decided 
that the Dutch are rather a dull people, so when they them- 
selves are a Uttle slow or dense in appreciating facts they 
exclaim, " Well, I'm a Dutchman." Leaving dulness aside 
as the distinguishing mark of most people in most countries, 
it is true that the Dutch are slow and cautious. The condi- 
tions of their environment have compelled them to be so. 
Providence put them in a place where deliberation and 
carefulness were not merely the greatest virtues but the 
indispensable requirements of private and public safety. 

The quaUties which are great in a nation and which have 
mainly contributed to its making, as history shows, are some- 
times not so necessary or commendable when they guide the 
simple transactions of private hfe. Slowness in the sense of 
dehberation is a good thing, but if carried too far it means 
the loss of opportunities. Caution in the sense of looking 
well before one leaps is a good thing, but if too long observed 
it entails nothing being done. Without being unkindly or 
heedlessly critical, there is reason to say that the extreme 
exercise of these two excellent quaUties when used in 
moderation somewhat too largely colours the whole of 
Dutch hfe. 

The true character of a people, more especially of one so 

236 



National Characteristics, etc. 237 

completely immersed in commerce as the people of HoUand, 
comes out in those transactions between man and man 

which are called generically business. Here 
Business^ ^^ ^^^ ^^^ knows anything on the subject 

will dispute the statement that the Dutch are 
terribly slow. I have a Belgian friend who visits the country 
repeatedly and regularly, but who is often kept waiting a week 
for an order that in most countries would be decided in an 
hour. " In Belgium," as he rightly says, " we do as much 
work in a day as they do here in a week," but as it is always 
just to give the other side of the picture, it may be mentioned 
that when the order comes it is a big one, and there is no 
hagghng about price. 

Dutch caution also leads to the rejection of many matters 
that more enterprising and less reflective races would take up 
with avidity, and many of these affairs concern the develop- 
ment of Holland herself and the progress of her people. Many 
national undertakings could be named that the Dutch them- 
selves will not support financially because their keen sense 
and intimate knowledge of the drawbacks or dubious points 
in the enterprise have prevented their reahsing the compensa- 
ting advantages with the assurance of profit. These things 
are well known in the country itself. Let me illustrate the 
statement by one instance. There has long been afoot a 
scheme for constructing an electric tramway across a large 
and somewhat neglected province. The Government has 
promised one-third of the capital, the province will provide 
another, but an appeal to the pubUc for the remaining third 
in Holland itself is admitted to be hopeless, and must therefore 
be directed abroad. It is said, I know not with what truth, 
that the Dutch investor prefers the high interest of colonial 
investment with some risk to the low interest with complete 
security in the home market ; but at any rate this will not 
explain how there is no money at all for home undertakings, 
which everybody can easily ascertain for himself to be 
necessary and properly authenticated. 



238 Holland of the Dutch 

There is another motive behind this reluctance to commit 
himself definitely and irrevocably in any business and that 
is the apprehension that he may not get the 
^Taken in."^ ^^^ ^^ ^^® bargain — in other words, that he 
might be done, which would hurt a Dutch- 
man's feehngs very much. He therefore takes a long time 
to think it over, and turns the matter many times round in 
his mind before he commits himself to a decision. George 
Canning wrote long ago the Hues — 

" In matters of business the fault of the Dutch 
Is giving too little and asking too much;" 

but that is not hterally true, for the Dutchman is not a haggler 
in large affairs. He ponders over the price, and after due 
cogitation either accepts or dechnes altogether. But perhaps 
it is in the small things of hfe that the national trait of not 
wishing to be taken in, of striving to get the largest quantity 
possible for the money, comes out most clearly. In a city 
on the Meuse where fish arrives by boat several times a week, 
and is sold over the boat side by the fishermen themselves — 
I know highly respectable professional gentlemen with good 
incomes who go down themselves to buy the fish at these 
improvised markets and carry it home with them in order to 
save a few cents. It is true that this is done very early in the 
morning before their neighbours are hkely to see them. 

In the lower grades of society, and especially in the market- 
place, hagghng and huckstering are the essential features of 

all the transactions that take place. The 
Market Scenes, artful countrjrman and countrywoman are 

supposed to have come into the town to fleece 
the poor townspeople, who are equally determined not to be 
imposed upon. A wordy battle accompanies every deal, and 
when the purchaser has beaten the seller down to the last cent 
he, or generally she, will do their best to get some trifling addi- 
tion thrown in. I once witnessed a most amusing scene of this 
character. The battle was fought over three cauliflowers 



I 



National Characteristics, etc. 239 

which the purchaser, an old woman, wished to acquire for the 
price of two. The young man in charge of the stall refused 
to give way as to price, but he added under pressure one shallot 
and a httle parsley. The woman handed him the money in 
small pieces, which required some counting, and then coming 
to a sudden resolution snatched up the third cauliflower and 
bolted. However, the young man was not to be beaten. 
He rushed after her, caught her up and recovered his cauh- 
flower, both ending the affair with a laugh which was perhaps 
a little forced. 

These traits, which at the worst are only a little petty, must 
not be magnified into bad quahties, and they are compensated 

for by the possession of most of the good 
Polnts^^ points which we deem virtues. The Dutch 

are a singularly truth-teUing, modest, and 
frank people. They are in every rank of hfe perfectly natural 
and free from side. They are men of their word and keep their 
promises. If they say they will do a thing, they will do it, per- 
haps a little slowly but eventually it will be done. They are 
also most obUging among themselves and to strangers. They 
will put themselves to a great deal of trouble to find out what 
may be asked them, and they will do this without ostentation 
or giving any indication that it has taken up a good deal of 
their time. The only time they show much embarrassment 
is when they are being thanked with, as they think, a Httle 
too much warmth for what they have done. Then they will 
very often make a hurried excuse for departing. They also 
dislike flattery, and anyone who attempts it is promptly dis- 
liked and set down as a knave. They have no sympathy with 
weakness of any kind or sentimentaUty, and the person 
displaying them will find a low place in their esteem. They 
have a respect for power and strength of all kinds, but they 
beUeve that the essential qualities in a man as in a nation 
are coolness and calmness. They Uke and respect the man 
who can discuss weighty matters gravely and philosophically 
— not less one who can face danger without excitement or 



240 Holland of the Dutch 

flinching. Although they have to put up with the licence 
of the kermis, which all true Netherlanders detest in their 
hearts, they dishke what is boisterous, noisy, and turbulent, 
and vaunting and swagger are heinous faults in their eyes. 
They used to be styled in the old formula " grave and very 
estimable signors," and they have still the same qualities. 
They choose their friends among the same kind. 

Instead of pursuing this analysis any further, I think it 
will be more interesting to the reader if I endeavour to bring 

a few national types before him, and to 
Some Types. Hghten the narrative with one or two incidents 

within my own observation. They may 
be regarded as in some sense an illustration of what has 
just been written, and as they relate to men who, in their 
different stations of life, I regard as friends, I hope I may 
be pardoned by them if the secret of their personaUty should 
be betrayed. 

The first is a Dutch soldier, a general ofi&cer, a worthy 
representative of the army which fought so well at Malplaquet 

and Waterloo. He comes of an ancient and 
Soldier. honourable family. His ancestors were 

among the elite of Amsterdam, their features 
are preserved on more than one canvas of Rembrandt's. His 
service affording no opportunity of distinction in the field, he 
turned to literature, and told in glowing words the story of 
much of the prowess of his race on ** th' ensanguined field of 
Mars." He selected as his special study some of the by-ways 
of history, and among other matters he described what Prince 
Frederick of the Netherlands did in 1815 and in 1830. Out 
of that study grew a great desire to answer and refute the 
charges recklessly made by some imperfectly equipped and 
prejudiced English writers, who for some inscrutable reason — 
as if the battle were not packed with sufficient glory for all, 
vanquished as well as victors — had attacked the conduct 
and the courage of the Netherlander troops at Waterloo. 
Years of patient research among the records at The Hague, 




MAJOR-GENERAL DE BAS 



National Characteristics, etc. 241 

in Brussels, in Berlin, and in London, were devoted to the 
collection of the evidence upon which was built up his monu- 
mental work on " the campaign of 1815." No one has 
attempted to refute or could refute the unanswerable testi- 
mony of facts therein set forth in stately and measured terms, 
but some of those who too lightly repeated the errors and 
adopted the prejudices of the past have failed to make the 
amende honorable, and it is t3rpical of the simplicity and 
uprightness of the Dutch character that this omission to 
admit where they went astray in their authorities, and 
repeated charges that cannot for a moment be sustained, 
has greatly surprised General de Bas, and somewhat 
shaken his faith in the impartiality of EngHsh writers of 
history. 

It would be futile in this case to attempt to conceal the 
name of the officer whom I have selected as typical of the 
army to which he belongs. He is one of a class of gentlemen 
who, without any of the braggadocio of professional soldiers 
in some military countries, and notably in Prussia, know how 
to do their duty faithfully and well. We may say of the 
Dutch military man that he is a gentleman first of all, and an 
officer afterwards. He is not given to clanking his sabre, 
or looking fiercely at prospective opponents. He is quite 
happy in mufti, and even happier than when he is in uniform. 
He does not look down upon a man because he may not 
have " served," and he is fully aware that civic courage may 
be as great, although it has not a barrack-yard for its back- 
ground, as that of the untested warriors who listen to the 
German Emperor's annual allocutions on the mysteries of 
tactics. In short, the officers of the Dutch army are gentlemen 
with whom Enghsh officers would get on as with brothers, 
whenever an occasion for close association should arise. 

There is no need to reveal the identity of the original of this 
type, and as it would probably hurt the sensitiveness of his 
nature care must be taken to disguise it so that he might 
not suspect who was referred to. Salaries in the Dutch Civil 

l6 — (2390) 



242 Holland of the Dutch 

Service are not very high, and a man may serve his country 
very well for thirty years in a responsible position, and 
yet draw a salary of less than £300 a year. 
A Civil Servant. Such is the status and reward of my 
friend. For that reward he labours for the 
State ten hours a day for six days in each week, undertakes 
long journeys, tramps remote and bleak downs and marsh- 
lands, discusses and regulates delicate matters with the 
officials of neighbouring countries, and shows himself equally 
skilful as official, engineer, and minor diplomatist. He is 
brought into contact with the uniformed and much-medalled 
bureaucrats of another State, and he himself puts on a rather 
nondescript civilian's costume, which is generally a little the 
worse for wear. Yet he manages to hold his own with the 
best of them, for he is, what neither official uniform nor titles 
can alone make a man, a gentleman. 

Nor is he helped by his Government when he has occasion, 
as sometimes happens, to meet the representatives of another 
country on business. In official rank he is their equal, but 
he is provided with no escort. He arrives at the spot agreed 
on for the interview with one attendant who, hke his superior, 
displays no insignia of official status. On the other side, 
when the frontier is that of Germany, there will be the land- 
rath, the district commissioner, the nearest burgomaster, 
the head of the customs' commandos, all will have clerks in 
attendance on them, and, finally, there will be at least ten 
men of the frontier guard. At least thirty German officials 
in full uniform will be assembled to do a piece of work which 
the Dutch Government considers can be done by one official 
and his man. That it is done well under such conditions 
reflects the highest credit on the tact and patience of the 
man who knows how to hold his own with his epauletted 
adversaries. 

But my friend is much more than an official. He is a man 
of great erudition, an authority on heraldry and archaeology, 
and has the genealogical history of the great famihes of his 



National Characteristics, etc. 243 

country at his fingers' ends. Like the majority of his fellow- 
countrymen, he places his knowledge at the disposition of his 
friends. No trouble is too great for him to take in his desire 
to obUge them, and he never rests satisfied until he has not 
merely answered all their questions but exhausted all the 
available information on the subject to which they refer 
within his reach. Such men are rare in any country, but in 
Holland they are more frequently encountered than elsewhere. 
It is to be hoped that their kindly efforts meet generally with 
the appreciation they deserve. 

It is a popular delusion in England that the Dutch are 
stand-off and inaccessible. I venture to assert on the con- 
trary that there is no country in the world 

Schoolmaster, where men are more willing to meet their 
brother man on a footing of friendly equahty, 
or quicker in forming friendships. But it is not less true 
that if a basis of confidence is not quickly found the relations, 
however frequent, may never emerge from the stage of 
aloofness and latent aversion. Once indifference lays hold 
of a Dutchman's mind, it would need an earthquake to make 
him lay it on one side, and resume interest in a man or a 
subject that he had decided to ignore. 

I have in my mind a gentleman with whom I was thrown 
into contact by a purely fortuitous circumstance, and whose 
friendship I have the privilege of retaining. As the incident 
reveals what may be called the forthcomingness of the Dutch 
as opposed to the common behef in their reserve and coldness 
towards strangers, I describe it in support of my view. I had 
occasion to visit a small place about ten miles out from the 
city in which I was staying, traveUing there by motor-bus, 
and counting on returning by the same means. Having much 
time to spare before the hour arrived for its departure, I 
decided to walk back a couple of miles to the first halt. When 
I arrived at the cafe, my knowledge of Dutch being too sUght 
to carry on a conversation with the proprietress, she said, 
" I will send out a gentleman who happens to be here and 



244 Holland of the Dutch 

who speaks French," A middle-aged gentleman appeared, 
whose somewhat grave aspect was reUeved by a pleasant smile. 
He told me that on that particular day of the week there was 
no return bus, and that I had been misinformed. There was 
no alternative but to walk. In the course of conversation 
he showed himself a man of great amiability and intelligence. 
He read English, but he would not commit himself to speaking 
it ; and I soon learnt that he was the headmaster of a school 
lying a few miles off the road I was travelling. It was getting 
late, darkness was setting in, and after ten minutes' talk 
I started on my return journey. When we parted it never 
occurred to me, and I am sure it did not occur to him, that 
we should ever meet again. Neither of us knew the other's 
name. 

I had a certain piece of work to do, the nature of which is 
of no interest, but only a Dutchman could do it, and I had 
great difficulty in finding one. I was in great doubt on the 
subject when the thought suddenly flashed across my mind, 
" I wonder whether my amiable acquaintance of a few days 
before would assist me." I knew two things only — the name 
of his village, and the fact that he was the schoolmaster. 
I took the next train to the place, ascertained the position 
of the school, and when all the boys had left entered the build- 
ing and presented myself before the astonished gaze of the 
dominie. I had not mistaken my man. The first look of 
surprise quickly gave place to a pleasant smile of welcome, 
there was no affectation of a pretence that he did not remember 
me, he took up the conversation exactly where it had stopped 
at the roadside inn, and in half an hour we were the best 
friends in the world, and so I hope we remain. I have often 
since wondered what would have been my reception from one 
of my own fellow-countrymen under similar circumstances. 

I come now to a different class of man, but one equally 
typical of his country. The Dutch waiter, copying no doubt 
the example set him by his chief, the excellent Dutch hotel- 
keeper, is a most obliging fellow, but my observation showed 



National Characteristics, etc. 245 

that he is most of all obHging when he hails from the province 

of Groningen. It is to the old city of Groningen that I will 

_ direct the reader's attention. Gronineren must 

The Waiter s 

Idyll. ^^ ^^® happiest place in Europe, for the people 

are always laughing. In the afternoon and 

later on, almost to nightfall, the laughter of the girls on one 

side of the street and of the young men on the other sounds 

like the unceasing twittering of birds ; but the two sexes do 

not walk together, or rather that is the exception, for if a 

young man and young woman walk down the street together 

they are at once declared to be engaged, and the tie is as 

difficult to break as a Scottish marriage. 

At a certain hotel in Groningen there is a head waiter, tall, 
blonde, and blue-eyed. He is still a soldier in the reserve of 
the Dutch army. He has another year to serve before passing 
into the landwehr, and it will cost him, as he regretfully says, 
25 florins, because he has to provide a substitute at the hotel 
during his absence. As his position demands, he speaks several 
languages, and among them English. His voice is low and 
soft, and he has the most perfect articulation. A natural 
question arose, " Where did you learn English ? " to which 
came the unexpected answer, " I learnt it here at school. 
I have never been in England, but I wish much to go there." 
It was impossible to withhold the advice, "On no account 
go there, for if you do you will spoil your English, and return 
with a very different accent." 

A Dutchman takes a long time to unravel a compliment, 
and I do not think he understood my meaning, for he con- 
tinued : "I should much like to go there, but my parents 
will not that I should, and one must obey one's parents. 
Then there is my httle girl." We were alone, and the restau- 
rant had large bay windows looking on the main street. He 
walked several times slowly and deliberately to the window 
in the intervals of his service, looked out right and left, slowly 
paced back again, glanced at the clock, and resumed his place 
at the window. The clock struck twelve ; he looked at his 



246 Holland of the Dutch 

watch to see if it was correct, and finding it to be so a slight 
flicker of anxiety passed over his face. He left the window, 
re-paced the room more slowly than ever as if to make the 
most of it, and then resinned his movement towards the win- 
dow. As he passed my table I hazarded the remark, ** You 
are expecting some one," but before he could reply an object 
outside met his eye, and with a low exclamation he moved two 
steps at a time to the window. He was smiling at some one 
outside, and then as the person passed the face changed to the 
critical glance of a prospective owner. 

" I beg your pardon, sir, for not replying, but it was * my 
little girl,' who passes every morning at 12 o'clock, so that 
I may see her. She was late to-day, but I see she had met a 
friend, and they passed on the other side of the road. She 
will return on this side in two minutes." And again he took 
his place at the window. Soon his face was smiUng, and 
various salutations, not very demonstrative, at least on his 
side, followed, and then he called to me, " Quick, sir, and you 
can see her," and I did as I was bidden, and I saw the back 
of a young giantess with a single coil of hair down her back 
disappearing at the corner. " But," I said, *' she is young " ; 
and he replied, " She is sixteen, and we have plenty of time to 
wait, but she is a very good girl, and every day, wet or fine, 
she passes here at 12 o'clock so that I may see her." That is 
the idyll of the Dutch waiter in far-off Groningen. 

Holland possesses at least one hero, although he is probably 

not known to the ruling powers at The Hague. None the less 

he is the man of all men in the eyes of his 

jj^n compatriots along an extensive and exposed 

frontier region. Let me tell Jan's story, and 

as far as possible in his own words. 

I see him in my mind just as he first appeared to me across 

the counter of his shop in the old city of . Large of 

build, but not corpulent, broad-faced, clean-shaven with a 
fresh complexion that a child or dairy-maid might envy. 
Frank and pleasant-mannered, with large blue eyes in which 



National Characteristics, etc. 247 

there gleamed deep thought, perhaps too deep ever to reach 
the surface of expression. But with all his frankness there 
was observable a certain restraint as if he held himself in leash, 
and would not Hghtly give himself away. 

Our conversation began by my stating that I heard he 
spoke EngHsh, to which he repHed " Yes, I speak Enghsh." 
I told him I wanted to buy some of his cigars, and he brought 
forward several boxes. " Not those," I repHed, " but your 
speciahty, the cigar you call the Schwanenthurm." " Oh, 
yes," he rejoined, and a smile flickered round his mouth, but 
in his eyes came the glance of one who has been under fire or 
in great danger, and who stands on guard at the first menace. 

I knew the expression, and I said sharply to catch him 
unawares, " You have been a soldier and under fire." He 
rephed placidly, " I have not served in the Army," and I 
apologised for my mistake by saying, " I thought I noticed 
something that showed you had been in great danger." He 
looked at me fixedly, and slowly the look of suspicion disap- 
peared from his eyes, and after a minute he rephed, " I have 
not been a soldier, but perhaps monsieur is not so wrong after 
all, for I have passed through a great danger. If monsieur 
cares to hear it and will come into my private room I will 
tell him my story. 

" I was on the railway in those days, guard to the train 

that goes daily from here into Germany. The Germans hke 

to smoke a good cigar, and the German 

Jan's Story. Government hkes to see the smoke ascending 
in the air for half the cost goes into its coffers. 
But what it does not hke is when it discovers that no part of 
the smoke comes its way. I give you a riddle which the sequel 
wlQ unfold. Now the German hkes his cigar, but he hkes it 
cheap, sweet, and wholesome. But the German cigar is 
dear, bitter, and nasty. When he can get our Dutch cigars 
at a penny a piece he is delighted, and asks no question whence 
they come ; but the German Government gets very angry 
for it loses much revenue. 



248 Holland of the Dutch 



1 



" At the time I am speaking of, that Government learnt 
that all the people in the circle on the other side of this frontier 
were smoking Dutch cigars, while the registers at the different 
customs houses showed no receipts at all. There was only 
one conclusion, they must be smuggled, and after long inves- 
tigation it was decided that they must come into the country 
by the train of which I was the guard. So every day at the 
frontier station my train was examined from end to end, but 
nothing was found, and weeks and months passed by and still 
Dutch cigars were smoked duty free from Cleves to Goch, and 
further inland. 

" But at last a misfortune happened. One day the search 
seemed over, and I was waiting the signal for the train to go 
on, when suddenly there was a shout from the train itself, 
and an excited customs officer held two boxes of cigars out 
of the window. He had found them concealed in a first-class 
carriage. The chief of the customs was sent for, he examined 
the boxes, and declaring them to be identical with those in 
the shops at Cleves, he ordered the train to be turned into a 
siding for closer examination. I did not know how those two 
boxes got into that compartment, but I was still hopeful that 
all would be well. From one end of the train to the other 
search was made under the personal direction of the chief, 
but not another cigar was found. The chief, who for a Prus- 
sian official, was quite clever, exclaimed, ' It is ridiculous to 
imagine that this smugghng can be done at the rate of two 
boxes at a time,' and so he left the train and passed on to the 
engine, and here an inspiration unluckily seized him. ' Remove 
the coal,' and then I knew the game was up, for boxes contain- 
ing 50,000 Dutch cigars were under it in the tender. * Who 
put them there ? ' roared the chief to the engineer, who 
replied * The guard,' and I stepped forward. * Yes, it is 
true I put them there.' So I was carried off to the 
Schwanenthurm, in Cleves, to await my trial. 

" After some time the day for the trial arrived, and I was 
sentenced to two years in a German prison ; but as there is 



National Characteristics, etc. 249 

no prison at Cleves, for long sentences at least, I was to be 
removed elsewhere as soon as an escort should arrive. But 
in the court I had seen the face of a friend, who smiled 
encouragingly when he heard that I was to be removed to 
a different place, and then he disappeared. I made no 
reply to the sentence, and inwardly I felt confident that my 
friend would save me the trouble of serving it. 

" The day of my transference to prison arrived. A corporal 
and two soldiers were to escort me to the station, and as I 
had been very quiet and complained at nothing, I was regarded 
as quite harmless and resigned. Besides, how could a prisoner 
escape from a German city twenty miles from the frontier, 
and escorted by three -pickelhaubes with loaded rifles ? When 
we emerged from the Schwanenthurm I saw the streets were 
crowded with many people who had come to see my removal, 
for I had their sympathy, or rather they regretted perhaps 
the loss of their good and cheap cigars. But my eyes were 
not for them. Far down the street I saw a motor-car, and soon 
I saw a handkerchief waved, and then I knew where I was. 
As we approached, too, I heard the sound of the motor ready 
to start at a moment's notice, and its front was turned towards 
Holland. Then I knew what I had to do. 

" The corporal marched in front, on either side of me 
marched a private. Imperceptibly I slackened my pace, 
and my guards did likewise, while the corporal continued his 
rate, gradually widening the gap between us. When we were 
close to the car he was quite 10 yards ahead, and my moment 
had come. I thrust my leg between the legs of my left-side 
guard, and with a slight push with my left hand he went 
sprawling several yards in the vain effort to keep his feet, 
and fell headlong a little in advance. Turning to the right, 
I struck the other guard with all my force on the side of his 
head, and he fell stunned to the ground. In two bounds I was 
in the car, and the car was off. I do not think more than 
ten seconds intervened between my tripping up the soldier 
and the car starting. I know not what was done after the 



250 ' Holland of the Dutch 

flight began, but probably the corporal did not fire because 
he was afraid of hitting some one in the crowd. 

** No one attempted to stop us, so we raced along, leaving 
the high road, and seeking by-roads known to few through 
the Reichswald. We knew we should have to run the gauntlet 
at at least one customs house, and as they are in telephonic 
communication with each other, there was risk that we might 
be stopped, but we slowed down as we drew near, not to excite 
suspicion. Two douaniers were at the door, and they came 
a Httle into the road, and one exclaimed with a laugh, * Oh, oh, 
taking the good German sugar into Holland ! May you get 
through ' ; and at that moment we heard the telephone bell 
ringing in the office, one of the guards rushed back to receive 
the message, and we, knowing what it signified, put on speed 
and dashed ahead at all risks. Soon we heard shouting, and 
I glanced back and the men had rushed into the road, and 
I saw their guns raised to fire, but the bullets passed idly 
through the trees. We were in Holland. 

" I shall go no more into Germany, but my cigars go there, 
although not by train ; and in honour of my escape I decorate 
the boxes with an illustration of my flight in the motor-car, 
and I have called the cigar the ' Schwanenthurm.* Yes, the 
Germans like a good and cheap cigar, and the German Govern- 
ment hkes to see the smoke rising in the air, for half the cost 
goes for its fleet, but it gets mad when that cigar is a Dutch 
one, out of which it does not get a cent's worth for its share." 



CHAPTER XXVI 

CONCLUSION 

We have now come to the end of our narrative, and there 
remain only a few observations by way of conclusion. The 

mighty past has been sketched in brief review. 
The Future, the prosperous present has been brought 

before the reader, and an effort has been made 
to present the picture of a laborious, contented, and attractive 
people. Is it wrong to try to take a peep into the future ? 
At least we wiU chance it. What does fate reserve for HoUand 
amid the trials and tribulations of the European upheaval 
now looming with such menace before the affrighted nations 
in the near future ? Will she endure, will she pass away Hke 
Venice, wiU she accept her destiny without a struggle, or will 
Batavian independence only yield up the ghost behind the 
last paUsade and dyke of the beloved Fatherland ? Neither 
for Holland nor for England does a vista of quiet ease and 
undisturbed peace — both so cherished and valued in the two 
countries — open to the gaze of any one glancing with clear 
sight into the future. The portents are threatening. The 
handwriting on the wall is clear. It says only those who wield 
the power shall have the right to hve, and Holland is weak 
and unprepared. 

Holland is rich in herself, and she possesses colonies of 
immense value and promise. Even if a despoiler left Holland 

intact, the abstraction of her possessions in 
P^rSe. "^ *^^ 'East Indies would represent a most 

tempting prize for a military Empire which 
was set on the acquisition of great colonies. A victor in a 
general European war might well repay himself by claiming 
Java, and when the God of battles has dehvered his award 

251 



252 Holland of the Dutch 

there will be none to dare to say ** No " to the favoured party. 
One set in Holland preaches the gospel of helplessness. Its 
text is, " What is the use of resistance when we are sure to be 
vanquished ? " This is the party opposing real miUtary 
reform, which insists that a soldier can be made with eight 
months' training. It is a minority rather noisy in time of 
peace, but one that will hang its head in abashed silence 
when the patriotism of the Dutch people is fully aroused, 
and bursts forth as in the times of Wilham III and 
Hogendorp. If a tameless surrender cannot avert the loss 
of Java, then indeed Dutch opinion will decide ; 'twere 
better to make a fight for it on the side of those who will 
aid. 

Holland has no foreign policy. The conditions of party 
strife in the States-General would not allow of it. For a 

minister to declare that he had made his 
" Policy^^^^" country a member of the Triple Entente 

or the Triple Alliance would be to ensure 
the immediate fall of the Government to which he belonged. 
The Dutch ideal is strict neutrality, or in other words, sitting 
on the fence until the danger arrives. They forget that it 
may come so suddenly that they will be toppled over before 
it is realised, and that they may not be able to get up again. 
But the absence of a foreign policy, that is to say, of well- 
formed plans and firm decisions, does not preclude the develop- 
ment of natural tendencies. Even without a great states- 
man nations are beginning to see where their true interests 
lie, and who are their surest friends, and who their most for- 
midable enemies. Without a convention or a protocol, the 
pubhc opinion of a free country such as Holland soUdifies 
into approval of a more or less definite plan of action in certain 
eventuahties. Scientifically it is not a good system, for it 
neglects the means of giving effect to the decision, but it is 
better than nothing. At least it implies that the nation is 
not in favour of a tame surrender, and that it has some fight 
left in it, or in other words, is worthy to Uve. 




m 



W. H. DE BEAUFORT 

{Ex-Minister of Foreign Affairs) 



Conclusion 253 

Among such tendencies I give the first place to the gravita- 
tion of Holland and Belgium towards each other. The ill- 
An feehng that was naturally engendered by the 

Understanding revolution of 1830 and the dissolution of the 
wi gium. jQj^g(jQjjj Qf ^jig Netherlands passed away 

long ago, and during the last ten years the view has spread 
among the most influential people in both countries that their 
interests are closely intert\\ined and that a misfortune to one 
State must be a blow[to the other. They have^been^compelled 
by the course of evente to recognise that they both would 
suffer if one or other should lose its independence, and that the 
fate of either must very quickly prove the other's lot. There 
is, therefore, a real union of sentiment throughout the whole 
of the Netherlands such as has never existed before. 

The old view was that Holland and Belgium could never 
co-operate because the difference of rehgion made such a 
union impossible, but it has long been e\ddent 
Question°^^ that this theory must be revised. The 
Belgian revolution of 1830 was not a rehgious 
movement. It was a Liberal uprising for national equahty. 
And ever since that epoch Cathohc influence has been increas- 
ing in Holland, and the pohcy of that country has long ceased 
to be aggressively Protestant. In both countries there is no 
State Church, and hberty of rehgious opinion figures in their 
two Constitutions. It would be difficult to contend then that 
rehgion forms a barrier to an alhance between the two States. 
There was a time no doubt when the keenness of commercial 
competition precluded cordiahty. Amsterdam dreaded the 
rivalr}^ of Antwerp, and held on to the truly 
Co^m^titi'on. barbaric pri\ilege of shutting the Scheldt 
until it could be retained no longer. But the 
rise of Antwerp has not entailed the fall of Amsterdam, and 
Rotterdam has forged ahead \dth stead}' and increasing 
impetus. There is enough trade for all, and the prosperity 
of one has not diminished that of the other. But the question 
deserves to be weighed and considered : Would this condition 



254 Holland of the Dutch 

remain true if either Rotterdam or Antwerp passed into the 
hands of Germany ? Would not one of these great ports 
suffer an ecHpse ? It seems clear that on this ground alone 
the two countries should oppose together any attack on their 
independence. 

The force of circumstances led thoughtful men in both 
countries to conclude that so far as possible they ought to act 

The Movement together, and a Belgian-Dutch society was 
towards formed for the promotion of goodwill and 

Co-operation. cordiaHty. The success of this association 
has proved quite remarkable, and shows that although they 
now form two separate kingdoms and will continue to do so, 
there is a fundamental resemblance between the two peoples 
such as does not exist elsewhere on the Continent of Europe. 
The brother races have come together in a sense that has not 
apphed to their relations since they chose different paths in 
the time of PhiHp II. 

But it may be said that expressions of goodwill and the 
exchange of toasts at fraternal banquets count for little 
towards the conclusion of a definite convention for joint 
action. Yet when they are sincere, and in this case there is 
every reason to believe they are, what better basis can there 
be for an aUiance against a conmion peril, or for combined 
action in the hour of danger ? The man who treats the possi- 
bility of a Dutch-Belgian alliance as a myth does not under- 
stand the character of the races of the Netherlands, and fails 
to realise how deep is the feeling of patriotism that now stirs 
the hearts of the peoples from Frisia to the Ardennes. It is 
true that the Governments of both countries are restricted 
in their freedom to take precautionary measures by their 
parliaments, but none the less it must be noted that new 
miUtary laws have recently raised the annual contingent 
to 23,000 men in Holland and to 35,000 men in Belgium. 
These measures have been taken late, perhaps too late to be 
completely successful, but at least they harmonise with each 
other and seem to reveal a common purpose. 



Conclusion 255 

The greater part of Holland, like the greater part of Belgium, 

lies open to invasion, and there are no available means to 

_ r c- 1 defend it. But both countries possess places 

^*^^Stand. ^" ^^ ^^^^ stand which would long baffle the 

most powerful assailant. Belgium has Ant- 
werp, and Holland has her fortress behind the water-Hne 
defences. Neither army in its present state may be equal to 
operations in the field against that of a first-class mihtary 
power, but both are quite capable of defending efficiently 
a well-fortified position without any glaringly weak points. 
So long as Holland and Belgium hold out in the bulwarks of 
their independence, they will not have lost their separate 
national existence, and they will have secured by their efforts 
the time necessary for other countries to come to their aid. 
The tendency of the two divisions of the Netherlands to 
coalesce, and to work together, must simpHfy for their friends 
and well-wishers the intricate and difficult problem of pre- 
serving the status quo in their part of the Continent, and thus 
ensuring the dehcate equihbrium known as the balance of 
power in Europe. 

The second tendency noticeable in Holland is even more 
important and gratifying, for it signifies improved and closer 

relations with England. This is not a new 
Tendency. feature in Dutch policy, for confidence in her 

friendship and support dates from long ago, but 
the Boer War strained those relations by raising misgivings in 
the minds of the Dutch people. The Boers were regarded as 
brothers, many Dutch volunteers went out to fight on their 
side, and for a period Enghshmen were viewed with dislike. 
I remember well, when I was at The Hague during the height 
of the war, a great friend saying to me : " We have an informal 
reception every Sunday evening, and shall be glad to see you 
if you come, but perhaps you had better not." That state 
of tension has passed away, and I even think a more just view 
of the episode now prevails in the country ; but at any rate 
the hatchet is buried, and other thoughts fill their minds. In 



256 Holland of the Dutch 

Belgium there is reliance on France as well as on England, but in 
Holland England alone is thought of as the country's champion. 

Remembering the good work that has been done by the 
Dutch-Belgian Association, it may be suggested here that 

Room for an ^^^^^ ^^ room for an Anglo-Dutch Friendship 

Anglo-Dutch Society, if some of the leading men in the 
Friendship commercial worlds of London and Amsterdam 
°*^^^^* would take up the matter. It would promote 
a feeling of goodwill, remove misunderstandings, and con- 
tribute eventually to community of action. The idea would 
probably be welcomed in Amsterdam, The Hague, and 
Rotterdam, where a very considerable portion of educated 
people speak English in preference to other foreign languages. 

It must be noted also that the question of the Dutch 
colonies in Asia is one in which England is entitled to take 
a deep interest. In upholding Holland in 
Question!* Europe we are also upholding the system 
that exists in the Eastern Archipelago. It 
would be exceedingly unpleasant not merely to the Home 
Government but to that of the Australian Commonwealth 
if for Dutch rule in the Sunda Isles, which is essentially pacific 
and unaggressive, were to be substituted a military regime 
set upon expansion and aggression. The intrusion of a dis- 
turbing element there might well set the Asiatic world in a 
flame, and if it were seen that some other Power were about 
to displace the Dutch the voice of Australia and of India 
also would be raised in no uncertain tones. England, then, 
has as much reason and as strong a desire to uphold Holland 
in the East Indies as she has in Europe. 

There is very good reason for my saying that these views 
are held very strongly by the Dutch in Java. The home- 
staying Dutch have of late been rather startled by the dis- 
covery that a very strong colonial opinion exists among their 
compatriots in that island which is not to be controlled from 
The Hague. They are beginning to be restive, and to give 
signs that they think that the home authorities are rather 



Conclusion 257 

blind to the changes occurring in the Far East, to which, in 
Batavia, Holland holds one of the gates. The advent of 
Japan, the possible appearance of China as a great Power, 
are the questions of the day with the Dutch officials and 
planters among the spice islands, and their wrath has not 
been concealed when the central government proposed to 
send them a used-up " Dreadnought " bought from some other 
Power with their money. " Send us a new one or none at all," 
was the sharp retort from Batavia. Now what is the practical 
sequel of these views ? There must be a movement of sym- 
pathy, a tendency to co-operation, between Batavia and 
Australia, just as there is between The Hague and London. 
All I wish to make clear is that circumstances East and West 
are compeUing the Netherlander and the EngUshman to realise 
that they have conmion interests at stake, and that union of 
sympathy, policy, and in the end action, is essential for their 
salvation. 

This appeal would be in vain if the ideals of the two nations 
were not very much the same. The preceding pages have 
been written to no purpose if they do not make the reader 
think how close is the resemblance between English and 
Dutch hfe. On all essential points there is the same way of 
looking at things ; the love of order, regularity, and comfort, 
the respect for authority, the regard for precedent, the desire 
to be at peace with all men, and the high standard of civil and 
social hberty distinguish the two countries alike from all 
others. They may not be the only bulwarks left of Freedom, 
but at least they are the countries in which the recompenses 
of long-inherited Freedom are most visible. 

But nations do not survive by their good quahties, but by 

their power. Prosperity, the Hcence of liberty, which is not 

. less wanton than the hcence of tyranny, saps 

^^^S^^ilr^ the State, and we should never forget that 

the soldiers of Belisarius and Stilicho, although 

they could die as nobly as the legionaries of Julius Caesar, 

could not win their unbroken series of victories. In Holland 

17— (2390) 



258 Holland of the Dutch 

there is a perfect riot of liberty. Any man may start a Church 
of his own to-morrow, any man may rally round him avowed 
infidels, and nobody will interfere with him. It is nobody 
else's business, nobody thinks of troubling himself about the 
matter, the attitude of all is absolute indifference ; but indiffer- 
ence is not strength. It is the symptom of decay. Man has 
lost or laid aside the combative spirit which bids him put an 
end to indifference. That is all. All the motive forces in 
the world must rest with those who are not indifferent, and 
they will dictate to the indifferent : " You are with us or 
against us. We recognise nothing but decisive action. 
Choose at once and take the consequences." 

Here again the situation in Holland very closely resembles 
that of England. We, too, are witnessing the riot of hberty. 
We never have been invaded — it is not a fact, witness William 
the Conqueror, Louis VIII, and William III — therefore we 
never shall be invaded. We have derived enormous benefits 
from Liberty, therefore everything done in the name of 
Liberty must be good. We have long given up^the quest of 
new acquisitions, therefore we must impute the best of motives 
to every one else, and decline to credit that the State which 
has laboriously built up a navy almost equal to our own 
has any other motive than to take part in yacht-racing. We, 
too, like Holland, are revealing all the symptoms of decay ; 
but unlike Holland, we have other virgin sources of power 
that are in the full plenitude of their vigour, and that wiU 
come to the aid of the Mother Country when she is beaten to 
her knees. 

In considering the state of opinion in Holland and in coming 

to a decision as to what influence it might have on the national 

Different Views policy we must carefully remember that it 

in the Different varies in different provinces. In some the 

V Provinces. yiQ^^ is held that Germany is irresistible ; 
there it would be unreasonable to expect any vigorous mani- 
festation of patriotism. In modern warfare an untrained and 
unarmed population rank as sheep among wolves. In some 



Conclusion 259 

commercial circles in the great trading cities, opinion, 
clearly moved by the large and active German colony, is 
sjmipathetic to Germany on the ground that she is our largest 
customer. These are not national sentiments. They are 
those of helplessness in one case, and of the self-interest of 
a limited class in the other. But in the seven true Dutch 
pro\inces there is a strong national feehng which, despite 
any appearance to the contrary, beats as firmly as ever. This 
is the force with which friends and foes alike will have to 
reckon. It would be greater and more formidable if in all of 
them the true position of the country were properly appre- 
ciated, but in some owing to their lying aloof from the points 
of danger there is absolute ignorance as to the real peril in 
which the country stands. 

It may be worth while to explain exactly how Holland 
stands for the enhghtenment of both the Dutch and the 
English pubhc. But for one fact, which will 
Holland's Peril ? ^^ Stated, it is perfectly conceivable that 
Holland need not be involved in the next 
general European war. Many Dutchmen ignoring the fact, 
chng to the pleasant delusion. The fact that annihilates the 
pleasant theory is the geographical position of Dutch Limburg. 
It, unfortunately for Dutch tranquilhty and peace of mind, 
intervenes between Prussian territory and the bridges across 
the Meuse at Venlo, Roermond, Maeseyck, and ^laestricht, 
and those bridges He on the direct roads to Antwerp, Brussels, 
and the French northern frontier. It remains only to ask the 
question. Is a country not invaded when a part, somewhat 
detached it is true, is lopped off and secured by a hostile 
army ? Can Holland pretend to ignore such an outrage ? 
There is no precedent for a nation remaining supine when one 
section of it is shedding its hfe-blood at every pore. 

But there is another contingency. Even if Holland remained 
supine (which to me is inconceivable) at the overrunning of 
Limburg, that would not end her troubles. It is perfectly 
certain that the Powers which would be injured by that step 



260 Holland of the Dutch 

would take counter measures. In some form or other they 
would seize an equivalent for Maestricht and Venlo. In other 
words Holland would suffer from a double invasion, and in 
both cases as a passive victim. To state the case is to reveal 
that the Dutch people would never tolerate the first affront. 
The act of crossing their frontier, wherever it may be, must 
be followed by the declaration that the invader is an enemy, 
and as such to be opposed by the force of the nation and its 
alhes. 

There is no reason to think that because the Dutch are very 

pacific and would like very much to Uve a life free from 

disturbance and strife, they have lost all their 

Dutch Spirit. Spirit. They know very well that the best- 
intentioned and least aggressive people cannot 
escape from the designs of those Governments which claim 
a very large place in the sun, and which can only get it by 
robbing their neighbours. The Dutch are not such fools as 
to believe that this peril can be averted by humbleness. They 
know that they must stand up for their rights themselves, 
and that in the second place they must obtain the support of 
those who have a joint interest with themselves in standing 
up for them. They shut their eyes to the true situation down 
to the very last moment, and it is only lately that they awoke 
to its grim significance. They have more than doubled their 
annual contingent, and they are going to spend some millions 
on war-ships. No nation could do more. They have only to 
hasten, and to see that the system is thorough. 

But behind military preparations there is one thing necessary 
in a nation that means to live, and that is Courage. I can 
see no reason why the courage of the Dutch people should be 
doubted. A nation that has been long at peace, that has 
ostentatiously laid aside its armour and proclaimed its inten- 
tion to have no more wars, is necessarily not as prompt in 
taking up its weapons as one who has never laid them aside. 
But it does not follow that once it feels the trusted weapon 
in its hand it will not know how to use it. A new, inspiring 



Conclusion 261 

force comes into action, moral indignation at being driven by 
the lawlessness of others to fight for one's existence. That is 
the spirit in which the Dutch will take up arms when their 
national existence is imperilled, and I for one do not doubt 
that when the need arises they will fight with the fervour and 
tenacity of their Bat avian and Frisian ancestors. There 
exists in Holland a latent spark of independence that will 
burst into a flame when the country is declared to be in 
danger. 



X7A— (3390) 



HOLLAND 

OR 
THE NETHERLANDS 




INDEX 



Aansprekher, the, 177-8 
Adolphus of Nassau (Emperor), 

12, 204 
Adolphus, Grand Duke, 38 
Agriculture. {See Chapter XV) 
Agricultural Banks, 125 
Aix-la-Chapelle, Treaty of, 31 
Albert and Isabella, 23-4 
Albertina Agnes, 21 
Algiers, 93 

Alkmaar, cadets' school, 87 
Amboynese, the, 104 
Amersfoort, 88 
Amicis, Edmondo de, quoted, 

17-19; 189, 230 
Amstel, the, 214, 215 
Amsteldiep. 232, 233 
Amsterdam, 8, 27, 46. {See 

Chapter XXIII) 
Amsterdam Art Gallery, 222 
— — University, 222 
Amusements. {See Chapter XVII) 
Anna Paulovna Polder, 232 
Anne of Egmont, 19 

of Saxony, 19 

Appeal Courts, 62 
Area of Holland, 119 
Armada, the, 23 
Army. {See Chapter IX) 
Amhem, 9, 50, 197 
Asiatic Crews, 98 
Atchin, 105 
Atheists, 156 
Augsburg, League of, 28 
Australia and Java, 256-7 

Backhuysen, 189 
Bakhuizen, 182 

, Miss, 193 

BaU. 107 
Banca, 104 
Bankruptcy, 67 
Bar, the Dutch. 67 
Barendts, 91, 181 
Barges and boats, 59 
Barrier Treaty, the, 30, 31 



Bas, General de, 182, 240-1 

Batavia, 100, 104-5 

Batavian Republic, the, 149 

Bauer, 192 

Beemster Polder, the, 140 

Beets, Nicholas, 182 

Beggars, the Sea, 91 

Behring, 91 

Beijersbergen, Mr., 198 

Beklem-regt, 142 

Belgian Revolution, the, 33 

Belgium and Holland, 253-4 

Bencoolen, 104 

Bernard, F., quoted, 217 

Berne Convention, the, 184 

Bilderdijk, 180, 181 

Billiton, 104 

Bisschop, 192, 193 

Bles, 192 

Blok, P. J., 182 

Blokzijl, Max, 198 

Blommers, 192 

Boating, 161 

Bodegraven, 140 

Boers, the, 10, 143, 144 

Bois le Due, 25 

Boissevain, Mr. Charles, 185, 186 

Borneo, 106 

Bosboom, 192 

Bouwmeester, Louis, 202 

Breda, Bishop of, 153 ; military 

academy, 87 ; sieges, 23, 24, 25, 

26 
Bridges over the Meuse, 211-2 
Burger Schools, 74 
Burgundy, House of, 2 
" Buiten," to go abroad, 10 

, De, 186 

Buitenzorg, 100. 104 

Butter, 127 

, Artificial, 127 

Canals. {See Chapter VI and 

passim) 
Canal Population, 58, 60 
Cape of Good Hope, 100 



263 



264 



Index 



Carnival, 166 

Catz, Jacob. 179, 180 

Cavalry Regiments, 82 

Celebes, 106 

Ceylon, 100 

Changes in Constitution, 43-4 

Charles II. 220 

Charlotte de Bourbon, 20 

Cheese, 140 

Chinese, the new, 108 

Churches at Maestricht. old, 208-9 

Church service, 145-6 

Civil List, the, 115 

Service, the, 241-3 

Cloerlings, the, 102 

Clubs in Holland, 49-50, 224 

Coal mines, 135, 206 

Code Napol6on, the. 61 

Coffee, 127 

Colombo. 100 

Colonial Army, the, 101-2 

Institute, a, 109 

Colonies. {See Chapter XI) 
Commerce. {See Chapter XIV) 
Cond6, 19, 28 

Constitution, the. {See Chapter 

IV) 
Consultation Bureau, a, 66 
Contingent, the annual (Army), 

80. 89 
Cost of Education, 76 
Costumes. {See Chapter XVIII) 
Couperus, Louis, 182 
Cour des Comptes, 42 
Court Life. {See Chapter V) 

, the High, 61. 62, 66 

Courts, the, 61 et seq. 
Cows, 139 

Cromwell. Oliver, 26 
Curagoa. 100, 108 
Cycling, 158 

Dabbels, 189 

Da Costa, 181, 226 

Dam Palace, the, 216, 217, 218 

Danzig, 227 

Daum Frans. 198 

Debt, Dutch. 116-8 

Dekker, E. Douwes, 103 



Delft, 109 

Den Hollander, Herminia, 198 

Louise, 198 

De Ruyter, 91, 92 
Deventer, Bishop of, 155 
Diamond workers at Amsterdam, 

220 
Division of Dutch Army, 84-6 
Dordrecht, 8 
Douw, Gerard, 189 
Drama, the, 201 
Drawing classes, 193-4 
" Dreadnought " Question, the, 

96 
Duquesne, 92 
Dutch Character, the, 236-40 

Guiana, 108-9 

PoUcy, 251 

Dykes cut, 27 

Edam. 140. 229 

Education. {See Chapter VIII) 

Eem, 232 

EUzabeth (mother of Turenne), 

20 
Emanuel of Portugal, 19 
Emigration, 121 
Emma of Waldeck Pyrmont 

(Queen). 34. 48 
Engineers, the, 83, 87 
Enkhuizen. 232, 234 
Envyck, 232, 233. 234 
Erasmus. 179 
Eurasians, 102-4 
Examinations, frequency of, 70 
Expenditure, Dutch. 114-5 

Fadechon. Mr., 231 

Farms, 142 

Fetes. {See Chapter XVII) 

Finance, 41-2 

Flevo, Lake, 226 

Food Prices. 123-4 

Forestry, 76 

Frederick Henry (Stadtholder), 

20. 25-6 
French in Holland, 32-3 
Friesland. 147-8, 168, 174, 175-6 



Index 



265 



Froger, Mr., 231 
Fundamental law, the, 37 
Funerals, 177 

Genealogy of Dutch reigning 

family, 35 
Genestet, 182 
Germany, aggressive policy of, 

258-61 
Ghetto at Amsterdam, the, 220 
Gids, De, 182 
Gisbert of Amstel, 215 
Golden Helmets, the, 175-6 
Gouda, 140, 159 
Great Privilege, the, 36 
Grol, 25 
Grotius, 179 
Guicciardini, 196 
Gymnasia, the, 74 
Groningen, life at, 245 

Haarlem, 109, 147 ; organ at, 

199 ; Bishop of, 153, 155 

, lake, 4 

Hague, The, 8, 45 

Halfweg, great dyke at, 216 

Hals, Frans, 188 

Harhngen, 232 

Hartighs, 91 

Hasselt, 204 

Haverman, 193 

Health, 120 

Heerlen, 135, 206 

Heinsius, 30 

Helder Forts, the, 89 

Henry of Mecklenburg, Prince, 34, 

47 
Herring fishery, 171, 172 
Hertogenbosch, Bishop of, 153 
Het Loo, 7, 46 
Hindeloopen , 176 
Hobbema, 189 
Hogendorp, 252 
Hohenlohe, Count, 19 
Hoi, M. R., 196 
Holidays, school, 77 
Holland, meaning of name, 2 ; 

area of, 6 ; population of, 6 ; 

scenery of, 7 



Holland and England, 255-7 

, Counts of, 2, 36 

Fortress, 88 

Homeman, Helena, 198 
Horses, 138-9 
Hospitality, 51 
Hospitals, 124 
House in the Wood, the, 48 
Huet, Conrad, 182 
Huguenots, the, 223 
Huygens, Miss Comehe, 183 

Ice Clubs, 160-1 

Independent Church, the, 151 

Industry, 135 

Infantry regiments, 82 ; increase 

of, 86 
Israels, 191 

James II, 28 

Jansenist Church, the, 154 

Jan's story, 246-50 

Java, 100, 101, 102, 103, 104, 106 ; 

as a prize of war, 251-2 
Javanese police, 107 
Jews, the, 155, 223 
John of Brabant, 204 
John of Nassau, 15 : Queen 

Wilhelmina's ancestor. {See 

table, p. 35) 
John William of Frisia, 29, 30, 35 
Jojocarta. 196 
Jong, Mrs. Goekoop de, 183 
Juliana of Stolberg, 14 
, Princess, 34 ; anecdote of, 

47-8 

Kampen, soldiers' school at, 87, 

234 
Keppel, Sir Harry, 94 
Kermis, the, 161-5 
Kilometre books, 132 
Klompen, 143 
Kloppenburg, Mr., 231 
Kuenen, Professor, 182 
Kuinder, the, 232 
Kuyper, Dr. Abraham, 151, 183, 

185, 186 

Labour Colonies, 65 



266 



Index 



Landen, 29 
Land Systems, 138 
Landwehr, the, 81-2 
Lapidotte-Swarth, Miss, 182 
Laveleye E. de, 139, 147, 152 
Leyden, 109 

Limburg, Dutch province of. 
{See Chapter XXII) 

Duchy, 203-4 

Limburg city, 203 
Linde, 232 

Lohman, Mr. de Savornin, 183 
Lombok, war in, 105, 107 
Louis XIV. 27, 220 

Napoleon, 32-3 

Louise de Coligny, 20 
Lunatics, 121 

Luxemburg (Grand Duchy), 38 

Maeseyck, 211 

Maestricht, 204, 205, 206, 208, 
211 ; the Dean of, 209 

Malacca, 100, 105 

Marechaussee, the, 83 

Maris, Jacob, 191 

, Thys, 191 

— , Willem, 191 

Marie, Grand Duchess, 39 

" Max Havelaar," 103 

Marken, 168, 172, 173, 174, 229, 
230 

Market Scenes, 238-9 

Mamix de Ste. Aldegonde, 199 

Mary (William the Silent's daugh- 
ter), 19 

Mary II of England, 28 

Maurice (Stadtholder), 19, 20, 
22-5 

Mengelberg, Mr. W., 198 

Mennonites, the, 151-2 

Mercantile Marine, 128 

Mesdag. H. W., 192 

Meuse. the, 206-8 

Milk, 140 

Mieris, 188 

Moerdijk bridge, 130 

" Mooi Hollande," 10, 11, 187 

Morrisson, L., 198 

Munster, Treaty of, 25, 214 



Music. {See Chapter XXI) 
" Musis Sacrum," the, 197 

Nantes, Edict of, 28 
Napoleon, Emperor, 32, 33 
Nassau Palace (Brussels), 13 

, the Family of, 12, 13 

National Church, the old, 

149-50 
Navy, the. {See Chapter X) 
Nederland, true name of Holland, 

1 
Netherlands, Kingdom of, 33 
New Guinea, 107 
Newspapers, 185-6 
Nicolai, 196 
Nieuport (battle), 24 
Nijmegen, 9, 163 

, Treaty of, 28 

Njai, the, 102 
North Canal, 53 

Sea Canal, 53, 54, 55 

Nuyts, 91 

Occupations, 123 
Old Catholics, 155 
Oldebrook, 88 
Onnes, 192 
Oosterleek, 234 
Oosterzee, C. van, 196 
Opzoomer, Mrs. A., 182 
Orange (Principality of), 13, 14, 

29 
Orange, Princes, the, 33 
Orphanage, Amsterdam, 221 
Ostend (siege), 24 

Padvinden, the, 158 
Palace at The Hague, 45 
Pampus, the. 228 
Pannerden, 88 
Parma, 22-3 
Parties, political, 41 
Passenger Lines, Dutch, 129 
Pawnshops, 125 
Peat, 137-8 
Pensions, 116 
Petroleum, 136 



Index 



267 



Philip William (WQliam the 

SHent's son), 19, 20 
Piaan, 233 

Polders, the, 4 ; proposed new, 234 
Population, 119-21 
Portuguese Jews, the, 155 
Post Office, the, 134 
Potgieter, 182 
Potter, Paul, 189 
Preemption, abolished, 80 
Primary education, 68-9 
Prins, De, 186 
Prisons, 64, 65 
Provinces, the original Seven, 5 

, the eleven, 5 

Provincial States, the, 40 
" Pulchri Studio," 193 
Purmerend, 140 

Raad, the, 144 

Railways, 129-32 

Reading Clubs, 183-4 

Reformed Church, the, 150 

Reger, Mr. Max, 198 

Rehgion. {See Chapter XVI) 

Rembrandt, 189 

Remonstrants, the, 152 

Rene of Orange, 14 

Rennes, C. van, 196 

Revenue, Dutch, 110 et seq. 

Richeheu, 25 

Rivers. {See Chapter VI and 

passim) 
Roermond, 204, 206, 207, 208; 

Bishop of, 153 
Roman Cathohc Church, 153-4 
Roozeboom, Madame, 193 
Rotterdam, 8 

Kermis, the, 163-5 

Ruysdael, 189 
Ryswyck Peace, 29 

St. Bartholomew, 20 
St. Nicholas. 166-7 
Samarang, 106 
Savings Banks, 124 
Schaepman, Dr. H., 186 
Scheveningen, 168. 170, 171, 172, 

176, 177, 198 
Schimmel, 181 



Schools, 68, 69 

Schoolmasters, 72 

Schoolmaster, a typical, 243-4 

Schokland, 229, 230 

Schouten, 91 

Schregers-toren, the, 219 

Schwartze Th6rese, 192 

Sea, inroads of, 4 passim 

Seneflfe, 28 

Sinclair, Mr. de. 182 

Sittard, 135, 206 

Skating, 158-61 

Spinola, 24 

Spinoza, 79 

Society of Netherlands Musicians, 
the, 196 

Sohns, Emilia, de, 20 

Sourabaya, 104 

South William Canal, 56 

Stadtholder, office of, 36 ; abol- 
ished, 37 

States-General, the, 39, 40 

Stavoren, 227, 232 

Steen. Jan, 188 

Steinkerk, 29 

Stork, 189 

Storks, 141 

Suffrage, the, 41 

Sumatra, 100. 104, 105, 106 

Sunda Islands, 108 

, the lesser, 108 

Suracarta, 106 

Surinam. 100 

Synagogues, 220 

Tacitus, 226 

Tadema, Sir L. Alma. 194 

" Taret " scare, the, 4 

Tariff, the. 112 

Tasman. 91 

Taxes, Dutch, 111. 113. 114 

Technical Education. 73 

Telegraphs, 134 

Telephones. 134 

Telok, 104 

Terneuzen Canal, 57 

Tickets. Railway, 130-1 

Tobacco, 144 

ToUem. Hendrik, 181 



268 



Index 



Toorop, 192 

Toussaint, Madame Rosboom, 181 

Tramwa}^, 132-3 

Troelstra, Mr., 185 

Tulips, 146-7 

Universities, the, 75 

Urk, 229, 230 

Utrecht, 8, 87, 88; Archbishop 

of, 153 
, Treaty of, 31 

Vaals, 133 

Van Bameveldt, 25 

Bosse, Madame, 193 

Capellen, Admiral, 93 

■ der Capellen, Baron, 104 

Linden, Mr., 196 

Heist, 189 

. Veur. Major, 231 

de Vijzel, Annie, 198 

" Klaes, story of, 144-5 

• Lennep, 181 

. Ostade, 188 

- Riebeck, 91 

— - Speyck, Lt., 93-4, 221 

Tromp, C, 92 

— , M., 91, 92 

— ■ — Welie, Antoon, 93 
Vandenvelde (elder), 188, 189 
— (younger), 189 

Vecht, 232 

Venlo, 204, 205, 206, 207, 

208 
Verhulst, 196 
Verster, 192 
Veth, 193 
Vianden, 13 
Vienna, Congress of, 33 
Vise, 205 
Voerman, 192 
Volunteer System in Dutch Army, 

86 
Vondel, 179, 180 
Vrouwensand, 228 



Wageningen, Agricultural School, 

76 
Wagner Society, a, 198 
Walcheren. 56 
Walloon ^urch, the, 152 
Water Line defence, 88 
Waterloo, Netherlanders at, 

240-1 
Waterstaat, thef^8 
Weddings, 177 
W.gerif, H. A., 198 
Westervoort, 88 
Wieringen, 229, 231, 232, 233 
Wilhelmina, Queen, 34, 35, 46, 47 
Wilhelmuslied, text of, 199-201 
Willemsvord, 95 
William " the old," 14 

of Orange (the Silent). See 

Chapter II and passim) 
— — II (Orange-Nassau), 26 

Ill (Holland and England, 

27-9 

IV (Holland), 31, 35 

- V (Holland). 31. 32, 35 

I (King), 33, 35 

- II (King), 34, 35 

- Ill (King). 34. 35 

• , Grand Duke, 38 

Winter, Admiral, de, 93 
Wisselschebosch, 7 
Witt, Cornelius de, 27 

, John de, 26-27 

Woeringen, 204 
Woman Suffrage, 43 
Wouvermans, 188 

Y, the, 215, 217. 234 
Ymuiden, 53, 54, 55 
Yssel, 232 

Zaandam, 174 

Zeeland, 147, 168, 169, 170. 

Zuyder Zee. {See Chapter XXIV) ; 

the new plan, 231 et seq. 
Zwarte Cooter, 232 
Zwolle, 83 



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